Day At The Races

The Vice President of our department announced a couple of weeks ago that we were getting  a half day off on the 24th to go to the horse races in Saratoga.

Today is the 24th - so I packed up my sunglasses and sun hat, and more importantly "bucked up" my chin for a much dreaded day in crowds and heat and traffic.  None of these being words descriptive of my kind of fun.

I arrived at the office as we were instructed to "make a showing" and the feeling in the department was not usual, almost prickly with with buzzing electrical impulses.  Slowly, these impulses took on a form, occurrences, realities.

• The President of our professional staff union resigned his officer position so he would be eligible to apply for a coveted position that is opening up in September. 
• One of two police officers shot this weekend is the brother of a much loved co-worker.

The mother of another co-worker has been hospitalized twice in less than a week for complications of cancer/cancer treatment just weeks before a long awaited family wedding.

ENOUGH!   A day at the races is starting to seem more appealing. Off To The Races !!

The reserved picnic tables were in the shade with a brisk  breeze passing through with dependable regularity.  The Monday attendance was minimal leaving many nearby tables empty so our group could spread out and parking was an easy task. Advance planning meant a pleasant, uninterrupted cruise up and down the Northway.

And best of all, T.W. was able to laugh and temporarily get away from the stress of thinking about her brother in the hospital recovering from his gunshot wound, yet knowing he is on his way to a full recovery.  And a woman I work for brought all vegan food for me, and we chuckled as we watched our co-workers unwittingly devour the tofu dips ... which they obviously mistook for sour cream based deliciousness.   

No heat, no crowds, no traffic made for a unexpectedly pleasant day.