Stuck in a holding pattern

First off, I'd like to apologize to my loyal readers.
Both of you!
Ha!

I know I promised to have stories and photos of Croatia posted by now, but I'm having some issues with my laptop (insert joke here).

Also, a few other things have distracted me from repairing the tech issues:

I returned from Croatia just in time to get my last fix of baseball for 2006. Firecracker and I attended four Cubs games in the week I came home. As always, we'll wait til next year!

The next week featured a visit from our new CEO and also the new Head of Global Sales. I know the CEO from his history with our company, but the Global Sales guy was completely new to me. It was my job to introduce him to everyone, plan a TON of meetings, carefully repair a semantics difficulty with him, show him around the office AND prepare an outline of MY job responsibilities and accomplishments.

During that week, I ate lunch at my desk every day (when I was able to eat lunch AT ALL). Usually, I leave the office at 5, but not this week. In fact, I stayed so late one evening that the CEO, Global Sales guy and another division's boss invited me to join them for a late (9:30) dinner.

Dinner was actually fun. I made it a point to have interesting and funny stories to tell the CEO (who also attended the wedding in Spain in August). I also got the Global Sales guy to promise to bring me some of that fabulous German chocolate the next time he's in Chicago.

Oh, did I mention that the CEO also fired three of my coworkers that week?? including both of my bosses??? I'm not sure, but I think another coworker might be in the line of fire soon.

Yeah, not too stressful a week, huh?

The evening before the head honchos arrived, I got a call from The Editor. He called at 11:15 pm and I was already asleep, so I didn't call him back till after work the next day.

His news? A fellow former coworker died in a car accident that day and he thought I should know. Although I hadn't seen this guy in several years, I was struck with one thought: THIS IS WRONG! THIS IS JUST WRONG!

"Lem" was without doubt the sweetest, kindest, knight-in-shining-armor-type of guy you'd ever want to know. He was the only man I know of my generation who said things like, "Ma'am" and "Sir." And he was VERY handsome! He could stand in for Dermot Mulroney (sp?)...you know, the guy who played opposite Julia Roberts in "My Best Friend's Wedding."

And he was single. His mom told me that he was just thinking that he was ready to meet someone and settle down. He was 41.

Years ago, when we worked together, I got tickets to go see the band Squeeze. Of course, I had no one to go with me, so I asked Lem. He liked Squeeze, too, so he said yes. It was not a date, that was an absolute. Lem was more like my cousin than any possible boyfriend and it was more than fine. We had a great time at the show.

Last week, after I left Lem's wake, I stopped a few blocks away from the funeral home to get gasoline for the long ride home. It was one of those new gas stations that likes to entertain its customers while they pump gas, so they broadcast a local radio station.

The song?
"Tempted" by Squeeze.

I think it was Lem, thanking me for stopping by.