This Is The Last Place You Will Read About Politics

I am going out tonight! Only for a drive. I am the passenger, not the driver. I don’t know where we are going. I will tell you all about it another time. For now I just wanted to think out loud for a few moments. (I think that’s what a lot of us are doing with our blogging/writing anyhow, so I am hoping you will oblige me.)

I published a post last night about how I had a little bit of a telling off for being overly exuberant. I really appreciate all the lovely comments I received. My “superiors”, the people in charge of the project I was working on, were perfectly appropriate in what they pointed out to me, and they made sure that I could not take their observations the wrong way. They were very very kind and complimentary about me as a person.

The only reason I mention this is that I was thinking about MISTAKES. We make mistakes, or misjudgments, we misunderstand, we miscommunicate, we miss the bus and we are late for work. But we get over it, we bounce back, we move on. We pick ourselves up, dust ourselves down and carry on along the way. Hopefully, not too much damage has been done, but we do what we can to straighten things out and we learn a lesson, trying to avoid the same mistake again.

When I was a younger, I used to feel really upset if I had a telling off, it used to really knock my confidence. But nowadays, I am better at telling myself just to take the helpful advice and not let the correction crush my little old heart. But it takes a little while…for a day or two I am a tiny bit bruised, but I look at the person who corrected me with love. They love me enough to help me to see that I am causing calamity or problems that I may not have been aware of. There are plenty of times, I am so glad that someone pointed something out to me early enough to save me embarrassment and humiliation.

Now…as the title of this post makes clear, I am not going to be introducing politics onto this site. I stay neutral. I am not going to be taking sides with any parties or issues. I am way above anything as trivial as politics – haha! Just added that last sentence for effect. Don’t all jump on me now!

But I was watching the BBC news at lunchtime, and it put the whole subject of mistakes, particularly mistakes at work, into perspective. Can you imagine having one of the most public, publicised and painful jobs in the country (ie being the prime minister), and being told by the Supreme Court “you did something bad!” That makes my mistake at work fade into inconsequence!

I am not political at all, so please don’t think I am trying to make any political statement here. I am just thinking about mistakes, coming to terms with them, accepting correction and moving on. But for anyone, and I mean anyone, who is constantly scrutinised and criticised…oh I just can’t imagine it. It must be a living nightmare! You must have to have skin thicker than an armadillo’s! or an avocado’s skin – all green and lumpy too.

I am going to get over my mistake so much more quickly. I can see myself bouncing into work gleefully tomorrow (but with a little more restraint and self-control) without feeling even a tiny bit sullen. My mistake will be forgotten, it will not be in any history books, it will not be analysed by media corporations and brought up time and time and time again in my workplace.

I am not political at all – but I will say this, I am sooooooooooo glad I have a nice job. And really nice colleagues and lovely lovely superiors who really like me and just want me to succeed.

Just Spit It Out Man!

If you are a man and you are reading this, please don’t take offense…but sometimes men can be hilarious. Hilarious when it comes to communicating their feelings, expressing their emotions. Not all men. And then there are the charmers, who I am always a bit wary of. But I have had experiences with men who mumble and mutter and fudge their attempt to admit they have a soft spot for….well me. I am not referring to an enormous list. Just a small select few.

It matters not how you say it, just say it! Spit it out! He found a way to try to say it to me…and I honestly felt as if I was in the car with a teenager! But it was sweet. And what matters most is that it was greatly appreciated and in some ways it was just the best news I have heard in living memory! I wish he had communicated it long long ago. Well, he did try, but it came at a very bad time. And it seemed to evapourate quickly. Oh dear, we have so much talking to do.

How did he say it? He played a song…he was tapping around on his phone and then it started to play out of the car speakers. He was quiet, I was quiet. He looked at me, I looked at him. And out hands met on the gear-stick in his car. It’s a start! He is not a charmer, he never was a charmer. He bumbles expressing his emotions. But it matters not…he found a way to say it…and it was adorable!

The last time he said those words to me was six years ago. I remember it very well. I even wrote a post about it. I wrote a whole series of posts about what happened during the week afterwards and why the words seemed so hollow back then. He didn’t actually say the words outloud today…but the song…and the kisses…they made it all quite clear. Six years! This time, I hope nothing ruins this.