The Week in Review #9

This week has flown by. Last weekend, I just was getting over a week of feeling unwell. I was also dreading the thought of going back to work, knowing that there was shedloads to do and a week's backlog to catch up on, and that my Aussie Mrs wouldn't be around to have lunch with or for moral support. But the week has turned out to be a pretty good one. Here are the major happenings:

Most appreciated concern of the week:
My workmate Tanya telling Erin she was going to "keep an eye" on me, because she hadn't realised how stressed I was at work. On Monday and Tuesday, she made a point to get me to leave the office for lunch with her and had a chat with me over lunch, which really helped me get through the day. Even though her lunch invitations are often along the charming lines of, "Right, come on then wench, we're going to lunch," or "What are you doing for lunch, Fanny?" I really appreciated her care. :o)

Realisation of the week:
Our instincts are a built-in warning system. If a situation doesn't feel right, especially in matters of the heart, there is usually good reason for this.

Saddest moment of the week:
Seeing my Aussie Mrs, Erin, on Thursday, when she popped in to work for a last goodbye before her flight back to Aus tonight. I took my lunch mid-afternoon and we went down to the Senior Common Room to share a chocolate cupcake with chocolate icing and gold icing balls and a red velvet one, over a cup of tea. We both avoided the big 'goodbye' conversation; I attempted to explain how much I am going to miss her, but my throat choked and the words didn't come. Instead, we stuck to nodding at each other knowingly, with the glisten of tears in our eyes as we brushed off the event with casual statements like "I'll email you," and "It's cool, we're gonna stay in touch." We left work at the same time and I waited with her briefly at her bus stop. "There's a bus coming," she noted, "we better start saying goodbye." We had one last big hug and I wished her a safe journey as I waved her on to the bus. Walking away, the tears built up and I called the person whose voice I needed to hear the most. Hearing the call ring through to their voicemail message didn't surprise me much, so the tears abated slightly until a friend called me 10 minutes later to check I was ok. Then the tears came. I am so gonna miss that girl. We made a pact months ago that I am going to visit her by 2012. It's going to be a long 3 years without her.

Favourite social event of the week:
Catching up with my old workmates, or 'The Sisterhood' as we like to call it (there is one honorary male sister). We caught up for a drink and dinner, had a good laugh as usual and spent a really enjoyable evening in each other's company. We all have our own heavy issues at the moment, but we cheered each other up and shared work woes. We are such a motley crew of people and in some ways have relatively little in common, but we really like each other's company. We don't get together often, but the times we do are well worth the wait.

Most dreaded conversation of the week:
Telling someone very dear to me that the feelings I have for him are not the same as the ones he has for me. I wasn't sure for a while, but after much thought and heartache, I know the reality. There is no way of having this conversation without us both ending up heartbroken, but there is also no way of pretending the conversation doesn't need to be had.

Unexpected conversation of the week:
I spoke to another person who is dear to me, but one that I had written off as no longer part of my life. It turns out that my sadness at our lack of contact was reciprocated. Some people make one's life immeasurably better just by being in it. This is one of those people. I know how rare it is to meet a real kindred spirit, so I don't wish to lose this one.

Favourite news of the week:
Learning that the driver of my tube train home was about to become a grandfather. :o) And that one of my friends has become an uncle for the first time.

Favourite meal of the week:
The epic one (cooked by my very own Dad) that I just had this evening. There was so much to choose from that there wasn't even room to try everything I wanted; I couldn't even finish it. But it was delicious - I needed that!

I hope you all had a blessed week. Whatever happiness, sadness, challenge or stress you experienced, I hope you can gain something positive from it.