10 things--scottsdale, az

I was in Scottsdale on Friday and Saturday for what work called a rejuvenation meeting. As corny as it sounds, it was very fun and, even more, it was very needed.

1. Flying first class. That never ceases to be exciting. Better yet, there wasn't even anyone in the seat next to me. I got to spend the entire flight reading magazines and thinking about/planning house projects. What I wasn't doing? Working. What better way to start the trip?


2. That work even has something called a "rejuvenation meeting." Can I say again how much I like this company? Having a meeting titled that means that they recognize (a) that we have feelings, (b) that we maybe could be in better spirits (even though we aren't really in bad ones), (c) that our spirits are important, and (d) they are willing to do something about it. Shocking really.


3. "It's a dry heat." I know the humidity makes a difference--I have spent most of my life in coastal Texas for Pete's sake. I hate it when people justify their heat. 102 is hot regardless.


4. We stayed here. I've been enough places to know that the websites can be misleading. I thought this place could go either way. It was pretty nifty. It was popular with the Rat Pack, etc in the 50s and 60s. It closed down and then reopened a few years ago. If you haven't already caught on, I like history and unique places to stay.


5. My room had a mood light over the tub. I never used the tub (who had time to lounge there when there were other things to do?) but I turned on the blue mood light just for fun. You can see it through the frosted glass on the right in the picture above (from their website--but that's what my room looked like).


6. One really gets treated well at these meetings. The food is always excellent (meals and snacks). People take care of you. They pick up your trash, they take your plates, they offer you water when you've been outside in that dry heat.


7. It's fun to see coworkers. I hardly ever get to interact face-to-face with the people who work for my company. I really like the ones who are on my same study. They're nice and smart and laid back. And some of the other women are single, too. Good to have people who can relate. I forget that other single people exist in the world.


8. Traveling without "working." Sure, we were forced to mingle and play host to some other people. And we received a little training. But it was nothing like my typical trip. I never had to be the bad guy. Heck, I didn't even have to pack my laptop. Oh, the luxury.


9. Good conversation. After dinner on Friday night, some coworkers and I hung out talking until we started to feel guilty for holding up the hotel employees. Then we moved to the bar by the pool. It's nice to have both "real" and lighthearted conversation with people. A good time was had by all.


10. We didn't get out of the hotel much. Arizona is pretty for what it is...mountains, desert. I prefer living where there is grass but I enjoy the change every now and then. One thing that I'm glad about is that we actually have the time changes here. I think it should be a national thing; everyone's in or everyone's out. It seems crazy that they are two hours behind us now.

So that's it. Lovely weekend. Monday yet again.