The Phillippines

Work went by fast for a Monday. I even left an hour early because I finished everything that I needed to do for the day. My boss told me that he will give me my pager tomorrow. Part of me could really care less. The only benefit that I can think of is that I get paid a flat fee every time that I respond to a page. I guess that in the scheme of things it does make me more important at work, but it will blur the line between home and work which I don't like. Oh well, I am sure that I will survive. Plus I doubt that I will be the first person they will page. I'm just the rookie in my department.

On an even happier work note, I have Thursday and Friday off this week. Yes, I am finally getting away from work for more than two days. I think that I am going to go to Minneapolis and visit an old college roommate of mine and his wife.

I liked Minneapolis the last time that I was there, which was three years ago. I was visiting an old girlfriend of mine. It was a good time. She did all of the tourist things with me. We covered part of the infamous Mall of America, took in a small art museum (not the Walker museum but a different one), saw an imax movie, a regular movie and a Shakespeare play. When we were together, it was non stop activity. She had the whole weekend planned out in advance.

The play that we saw was As You Like It. The Guthrie theater did a great job with the play. To this day it has to be the best play that I have ever seen staged. Plus I think that I liked my theater companion as well.

I haven't spoken to her in years though. We had a falling out the following year. I regret that in some ways. She was the brightest woman that I have ever been involved with for any length of time. We really clicked for a time. She had just as many quirks as I do.

We were both art majors. I was the traditional artist and she was going to be the professional graphics artist. She was going to make money and I was going to be poor. She was the modern woman and nothing was going to hold her back. The last that I knew she was working for a cosmetics company, which was so unlike her. She was more of a granola girl, if you know what I mean. That girl could make me laugh.

What we did best was annoy the hell out of one another. I would sing along with whatever was on the radio and she would hit me until I stopped. What a cute and happy couple.

Monday night is Michael Palin on PBS. Yet another installment of Full Circle for me to enjoy. Oh, how I envy that man. He is travelling around the world for a whole year. In tonights episode he visited Vietnam and the Phillippines.

Vietnam does not hold much interest for me. The Phillippines on the other hand is another story. My grandfather was born there and came to this country when he was seventeen. So I usually pay attention to anything about the Phillippines.

My parents got to go there three or four years ago. By some sad twist of fate my grandfather died while my parents were there. Here my mother had finally made it to where her father was born and she wasn't even able to tell him about it.