See ya.
May 30, 2008

I wasn’t sure I was going to be able to write one more ArbLog, but all the pressure from my fan club (my mom and Sarah Gainey) has made it necessary.  So here I sit, only one hour remaining of my ArbLife in its current form, reflecting on a year of strange and glorious achievements.

This year I took long, explorative walks in the middle of the day and called it “work.”  I also wrote and edited four Sagatagan Seasons and three Avon Hills Initiative Updates (and one ArbLog) and called it “fun.”  Just as “coordinating the office” is secretly “going on a daily adventure,” it’s all in how you look at it.

When I interviewed, I looked at that giant mountain goat not as a bad omen (as others might in a job interview) but rather a sign that this place might just be weird enough to work for me.  When I realized the Arboretum’s idea of decorating is an antique fish head that looks like something out of Tremors, I knew that I was correct.  Today, Cassie and I went for a drive in the woods (mainly she just wanted to drive the Suburban) and reminisced about our early days.  They don’t seem that much different than these days – enjoying the land, learning something new, and laughing a lot.  Today I learned how to taste the nectar of the Columbine, how to wrangle a newsletter from nothing to something in three hours (actually, this is my specialty), and how to scream in terror when Cassie almost hits a tree with the ‘burb.

For one last time, I can say it was “just another day.”

I think this is the part where I exit slowly, trying not to cry (to the tunes of Natalie Merchant's "Kind and Generous" played on my own tape player, a la Michael Scott in The Office).  If it’s okay with you, I’ll skip that part and go straight to being a happy, frequently-visiting member.  See ya.