Meetups, Visiting Colleagues, Referee Clinics, and Hot Chocolate

A week ago Saturday (5 December) was busy, although I didn't have an episode of Writer's Block to co-host, as it was cancelled for this month. However, I did attend a pair of Meetups. First, the Saint Louis Area Sippers (Coffee Meetup) (http://www.meetup.com/Saint-Louis-Coffee-Meetup/) got together at Cafe Ventana (http://cafeventana.com/) in midtown St. Louis. Nine of our group got together over coffee and caught up on things. A very nice time we had together, and at a wonderful place.

That night, I was with the Ethnic Restaurant Fans (http://www.meetup.com/Ethnic-Restaurant-Fans/) Meetup group for dinner at Flavor of India (http://www.flavorofindiastl.com/) restaurant in Creve Coeur. Our group of 20 enjoyed a very tasty buffet of Indian cuisine, and I greatly enjoyed the food and company that night.

Back to work on Monday (7 December), things have been going well. Plenty to keep us busy. After flexing out Tuesday afternoon, I paid a visit to the three nearest branches to mine. First, in Ballwin, I brought cookies to the staff and gave Christmas cards to Cory and Adam there. Next, I was at the Manchester branch, with cookies for all and cards for Maggie (who just started as manager there) and Meggie. Finally, I went to the Kirkwood branch with cards for Derek, Mel, and Kim, plus cookies for all. At these branches I visited, they all greatly appreciated the gesture.

After coming home that Tuesday (8 December), I took and passed the online futsal referee test, and took that result with proof of payment to Lamborghini Gold Coast Athletic Centre (http://lamboathletic.com/) in St. Charles for the annual recertification clinic. A good crowd of referees was on hand to learn of points of emphasis, plus time on a court for exercises in mechanics. At the end, I got my 2016 futsal badge for my uniform.

My off day Thursday found me visiting more branches in the morning. This started with the one in Columbia, Illinois, where I left cookies and card for Tim, who was away when I arrived. Then, it was the Airport branch, where I had cards for Alex, Kerry, and Adrian. I chatted a bit with Alex and Kerry, who were there. Traveling northwest, I stopped by the St. Charles Car Sales location and chatted with Anthony, bringing him cookies and a card. I then left a card and cookies for Dan at the St. Peters rental branch. Finally, it was the branch in Fenton, where I chatted with Drew and Kevin. A most productive morning.

That afternoon, I took and passed my outdoor referee test. All was ready for the recertification that night at St. Louis Community College at Forest Park (http://www.stlcc.edu/FP/). We went over the rule changes (very minor), plus viewed video of game situations and went over points of emphasis for our youth soccer matches. I received my 2016 referee patch and Laws of the Game at the end of the night there. I treated myself to a milkshake at a nearby Steak 'n Shake (http://www.steaknshake.com/) before driving home.

After work yesterday (12 December), I got the car washed and bought some cargo pants. I also went to bed early that night, for an early wake up call the next morning.

Today, I was up around 4 am, as I had to be in downtown St. Louis by 5:45 am. For the second year in a row, I was a volunteer at the St. Louis Hot Chocolate Run (http://www.hotchocolate15k.com/stlouis), 15 kilometer and 5 kilometer runs through downtown St. Louis. Hundreds of runners took part in this event, whose proceeds (along with other Hot Chocolate Runs around the country) benefit Ronald McDonald Children's Charities. I was one of the volunteers working the 15K gear check in, near the start and finish lines south of Soldiers Memorial (http://stlsoldiersmemorial.org/index.php). I and other volunteers took the runners' gear (like wallets, keys, etc.) and stashed them in boxes in the tent. We kept the gear secure, then returned it to the runners after the run. We had no real problems with this process, all runners got their gear back in good order. After my shift ended, I was treated to hot chocolate and some treats (banana, rice krispies treat, mini pretzels, marshmallows) and chocolate syrup to dip the treats in.

After the run, I walked through Citygarden (http://www.citygardenstl.org/) and past Ballpark Village (http://www.stlballparkvillage.com/) back to my car, parked just west of Ballpark Village, and drove home. Time to rest up and get ready for another week of work.

Later.

Time of Doubt

Things are going well at work of late. We're all working hard to keep the customers busy and coming back to us. Even with short staff at times and major surges of customers (like we had this morning), everyone in the branch in pitching in to make it happen. I'm glad to be a part of such a team, even if I do leave the branch at night rather tired.

This past Saturday morning (10 October) found me at the St. Louis Artists' Guild (http://www.stlouisartistsguild.org/new/) in Clayton for the Missouri Professional Communicators (MPC) meeting. There was a panel discussion of children's books, with three local authors of these works telling about the processes they followed to get their books published. It was a rather interesting program, and I mentioned this to one of the authors that spoke. This was also the first time I visited the guild, which was located at the basement of the old Famous-Barr store, and which had an exhibit of textile art, which I found pretty interesting. For more on MPC, visit their site: http://www.mpc-nfpw.org.

After the MPC event, I shopped for work shoes at a Famous Footwear (http://www.famousfootwear.com) store in Brentwood before going to Cafe Ventana (http://cafeventana.com/) near the Saint Louis University (SLU) campus in midtown St. Louis. At Cafe Ventana, I met Lisa Baudendistel-Suntrup, a SLU grad I met at the party at Humphrey's late last month. We talked over coffee for about three-quarters of an hour, getting to know each other more. Lisa particularly wanted to know more about me and to try to help me out as much as I can. It was a very nice time and I really appreciated Lisa meeting me for this.

That night, I went to Amsterdam Tavern (http://amsterdamtavern.com/) in south St. Louis to watch the CONCACAF Cup match between Mexico and the USA on TV. I joined with other USA supporters to eat, drink beer, and watch the game. We came away disappointed, as Mexico won 3-2 in extra time.

Sunday (11 October), I helped my friend Linsey Daman with a letter of recommendation for the Civil Air Patrol (CAP), in which she serves in a communications role. Linsey asked me to recommend her for promotion in the organization, so I wrote a letter that she gave to her superior that night. Hopefully, this helped her. I was to have seen Linsey the next night at the CAP meeting in Hazelwood, but she mentioned that afternoon she would not be able to come, so I passed on the meeting. Maybe next time.

Lately, I've not been feeling very well about myself. I'm greatly concerned about where I am in my life, and wondering if I will ever get ahead. I want to find a better paying job doing what I love--paying enough to enable me to move out on my own. (Nothing against my current employer, of course; I just don't want to be cleaning cars all my life.) Also, I want to find a girlfriend, not really having had one ever. This makes me wonder if I will ever find true happiness, whether I will ever have a viable future. I just feel so frustrated right now.

Anyway, I am off tomorrow (Thursday), so I should have some time to recharge.

Later.