Sharif came by the house after my rehearsal last night, and brought with him two bottles of Jones Cream Soda . . . and a chess set. So we drank clear liquid that tastes pink (it's the craziest cream soda ever, tasting exactly like cotton candy and not at all like the A&W cream soda with which I am familiar) and I had my first chess lesson. I love chess pieces visually, like to stare in shop windows where they have sets on display, honestly will be making my own board any time now, know the way the pieces are meant to move, even gravitate toward fiction that uses chessboard symbolism. And yet I've always been afraid to play the game for real. But I'd really like to have some strategy and the ability to look at a board and know what's going on, and the boy is an enthusiastic instructor, so I hope we can do that some more.
It was great- at one point during the lesson, I reached for my new camera to take a picture of Sharif and the chessboard. I complained about the lighting or something, and almost immediately he was explaining about shutter speeds and flash settings and things like that. My response, I believe, was "Hee hee, you're so teachy!" He's so going to be the cool science teacher.
I didn't get to bed until about 2am, so today- while not actually falling asleep at my desk (yet)- I must admit that I am feeling rather out of sorts. My patience is somewhat thinner than normal, which is an unfortunate circumstance when one is a receptionist. I must try very hard not to allow evidence of my irritation to enter my voice when I'm talking to annoying questionpeople.
This evening will be the first time that I am able to go straight from work to my house and stay there, being domestic, since . . . well, I'm not sure. But definitely more than a week ago. And tomorrow begins a second consecutive Three-Day-Weekend-Of-Extreme-Busyness. So tonight I absolutely must do laundry and clean the bathroom. This is non-negotiable.
