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February 24, 2003She (KL) Responded continued…As I scan the escape routes I realize that I’m most likely stuck. To my right and rear are offices without exits, slightly in front of me is Jeff and the one possible escape route. To the left, the boss continues to approach. In seconds the brain whirs—Knock Jeff out of the way, as he sprawls in my wake, he’ll slow the boss down just long enough for me to sprint through the other section of office, circle around, head for one of several exterior exits and speedily and stealthily make it to my car and hide until Jeff recovers and comes to the parking lot. Trying to maintain some sense of sanity and decorum in my sleep deprived state, I ponder for a millisecond whether my next action will be move nowhere at all, a left face and measured steps to the gallows, or the forward lunge. Against what I might predictably be expected to do, I turn to the boss and meet him halfway. I start with the initial and best chance approach, “C, I am sor—“ The boss interrupts me--this CANNOT be good. “I just wanted to let you know that I am not mad at you.” … The preceding dots represent the stunned silence and blank slate that I now represented. “It’s just that she does this kind of thing to people all the time,” he continued. I, in utter shock, but not showing it, do not believe what I am hearing. I’m not in trouble or at least not a focus of anger, he is putting it all back on KL, and I’m okay, in the clear, etc.! I attempt to assimilate a coherent and appropriate response. I settle on something like, “No, C, that’s fine. It’s my fault.” “No, its not. Well, ok then, I just wanted you to know that,” he smiles. “Thank you, for that C.,” I smile back. And after a brief pause, I look back at him as we both turn to leave and say, “She’s quite the conversationalist.” Now, truth be told, I had developed that phrase while frantically driving to work just some twenty minutes earlier. I figured that I needed some sort of complimentary, but drab and sexless kind of comment to make regarding KL to her father, my boss. That was the best I could come up with in my sleep deprived frantic sprint to get to the office. His smile broadened and he looks back and says, “Yes, she sure is.”
I return from Greenville sans Jeff and settle back in to my desk for some quiet hunkering down and doing as little as I can to draw attention to myself. I match the clock move torturously slow towards the lunch hour when I’ll be able to catch a power nap before proceeding to Bentonville. Lunchtime finally arrives and I am set on getting a power nap, eating maybe a little, and finding KL’s email so that I can email her something this afternoon. In the morning’s rush, I hadn’t bothered to even look for it. I get in the Jeep and find no email address. I get home, pack my bag for the Bentonville trip, and look for the email. Finding none, I return to the Jeep to look again. Nothing. I go back into the house and sift through the area on my dresser where I routinely empty my pockets at the end of the day. Nothing. I look at the clock and realize I have only 30 minutes left to complete my power nap. I nap. Returning to the office, I still find no email address in the Jeep. This is beginning to become a problem. I work on through the day. A little before 5, I hear that my 24 foot U-Haul chariot has been loaded with product, furniture, fixtures, and requisite office supplies for our new showroom. About 5:30, I tell Jeff’s boss that I am heading to my house to grab my bag and will be right back and leaving after that. This trip is one in which I have been temporarily assigned to Jeff’s boss for my experience in a similar project in Atlanta. Reaching the Jeep, I look again for KL’s email. Nothing. At this point, I’m giving up hope and also beginning to question my sanity for seeking an email so stridently to a person who is so clearly persona non permita. I arrive at my house and once again look for KL’s email. Nothing. I grab my bag, lock the door, and decide to give up the search. In this case, it is just going to have to be one of those ‘she has my number and she can get a hold of me’ situations. However, with typical stubbornness of males of my family when I arrive back at the office, I look one more time in the console of the Jeep. I notice the piece a paper missing the corner where I had written down my number. I notice the most obvious piece of paper on which the email should be on and isn’t—an envelope. An Envelope…hmmmm. Maybe, just maybe. I look at the partially stuck flap. It’s one of those flaps that never really completely seals, but will make it through the USPS system just fine. I carefully lift on end of the flap and see writing. The excitement level jumps a notch. A little more and I see KL’s and the boss’s last name. With ever so much care, I lift the flap from the envelope and Eureka! There it is in all its glory—KL’s email address! Now given how much effort I have put into this search, you probably assume that my next action is to sprint into the office log on quickly and send an email to KL. Nope. Not having anytime to craft an appropriate message, facing a five-hour drive, and, most importantly, not having much more brain function left after a full day’s work on so very little sleep. I tuck it away in a safe place and put my stuff into the big 24-foot U-Haul and drive away into the rainy darkness en route to Bentonville, AR. The next day I return from Bentonville in just enough time to have 30 minutes to load the Jeep up and make the 90 minute trip back to Little Rock for a combination farewell dinner for the mother and step-dad and birthday recognition for me. In typical confused fashion, Mom has set the reservations for 6:30 despite my urgent plea to move them back to 7 because of my need for additional drive time. I push the Jeep for all it has and arrive in North Little Rock in about 75 minutes, in the driving rain. Of course, this is all to be followed by second hanging out date with BK. You can read about that below. You can also read about how KL called me while on that date using the boss’s cell phone wanting to go out back home. In any event, I finally get around to emailing KL on Sunday evening. She finally responded on Thursday with apologies for the delay in responding and a very nice and a bit flirty reply. Problem is this, after hearing the Big Boss (owner/CEO) screaming and yelling and generally raising four sorts of hell from speakerphones, behind closed doors all morning, I look up as the boss, KL’s dad, enters the room. He is wearing his jacket, carrying his briefcase, and greeting everyone with a good luck. Knowing this is the universal sign for he is leaving the company either resigned in anger or terminated, I observe proper protocol of wishing him good luck as well and standing in amazement. It was a few hours after all this when I receive the reply from KL. Given the odd turn of events, I read it, as is my habit click reply, and then just stare at the screen. I have no idea how or what to respond with. The only thought that enters my mind is, “Today. It had to be TODAY, that she would respond. Only in my insane life could these events happen.” About five, one of my colleagues comes over to my area and says that the boss’s wife has just called him and hasn’t been able to reach him since 10:30 or so (about the time when this all went down). As he has had a curious medical condition develop recently, we agree that I should go and check on him. I arrive at his apartment a few minutes later and knock on the door. Here again, what do I say to my recently terminated boss whose daughter I kept out till after four a.m. exactly one week earlier. He answers the door with a smile and we talk for a while. I tell him about Mrs. L calling and remind him to call her. I offer a ride to the airport if he needs one and he mentions that KL may be coming back to town to drive him home. KL…back in town… I return to the office and armed with the knowledge that she must know what has gone down on this fateful day at the office, I craft a second message, having little clue how appropriate it is. I haven’t heard from her since that message and may not. It may be better in any event. But if she does, and interest continues to be displayed I will be planning a trip to Dallas environs in the next few weeks. Preferably, on the weekend of the 8th. *Updates on last weekend coming soon…A. Comments
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