The Deadbeat Club: Spark and Vigor

Another early morning matinee, only this time the kids were not greeted by sheets of rain but gusts of wind and occasional bursts of sunlight. The weather wasn't sure what it wanted to do today. One moment it was hailing, the next the sun was shining happily, then light, fluttering snow followed by huge angry gusts of rain. Since I was staying late for dance class (I love being at work from 8am-9pm!!), I knew I needed to get a good, solid walk in, and preferably, get a good dose of sun while I was at it. S was out of the office for most of the day and A was covering the front desk so I waited till A was free to leave. Meanwhile, the phone rang so many times that I put it on Do Not Disturb. Sometimes a girl needs some DND to retain her fragile sanity.

We walked down to the water and discovered that we were not properly dressed at all. The wind cut through our thin spring jackets and whipped angrily at our hair. But we persevered none-the-less for the delicious taste of freedom and the great outdoors. The wind was pummeling the lake so intensely that you could see white caps from the top of Main St. At the boathouse, pockets of ice bits sloshed around the shore in a frenzy of wind gusts. I cursed myself for neglecting to bring my camera - after all, see something beautiful, must capture it, must, must, it is called OCD - does the moment even exist without evidence?). We walked along the shore and discussed work and men - but not with bitterness as A pointed out later, but with humor! And isn’t humor the key to EVERYTHING in life? Without the ability to laugh at things and take them lightly, you are really screwed when it comes to this long-lasting mortal coil.

Not ready to go back to work quite yet, we headed up to Muddys and then Mirabelles for delicious hot chocolate. As I said later to A, "It's French! Oooh la la!" and did I mention that it had real whipped cream? We sat on the City Hall steps and soaked up as much sun as the clouds would allow. Across the street was work and our small walled offices but we held out as long as was possible. When we finally returned, the walls felt a little farther off and the phone calls less painful. Fresh air and sunlight seem to fix any ailment. Oh, and the overwhelming smell of hyacinth doesn’t hurt either.

"Life and death, dreaming and wakefulness: stations for the perplexed soul. It traverses them stage by stage, taking signs and hints from things, groping about in the sea of darkness, clinging stubbornly to a hope that smilingly and mysteriously renews itself. Traveler, what are you searching for? What emotions rage in your heart? How will you govern your natural impulses and capricious thoughts? Why do you guffaw with laughter like a cavalier? Why do you shed tears like a child?"
- Naguib Mahfouz, The Journey of Ibn Fattouma

Later, we were talking about something (which escapes me now as much of the day slips away into the nebulous cave that is my crappy rotten memory) and I told S that she had "spark and vigor." It is the truth too. And every office needs some spark and vigor to bring it some goofiness and entertainment. So that is what we provide (on our good days), some bright spots in the dark, daily grind that is this waking life. And that is what The Offasty is. A little bit of the Office, a sprinkling of Dynasty, and a whole lot of spark and vigor - and voila, you have The Offasty! Watch at your own risk and do your own episodes of the Offasty!

DBC23: The Offasty, Episode 1: Burnt Toast