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Today was a coworker’s last day at work, so a group of us who share an office with him ate lunch together. We ate at a picnic table in the courtyard, right beneath a nice shade tree. It rained yesterday (it rains every day now) so we grabbed extra napkins so that we could wipe everything down.  We noticed a few ants around the table; in fact, there were a few ants on the table by the time we finished. But no matter, we all said. They’re just ants. They won’t hurt anyone. 

The itching started an hour or so later, and I couldn’t tell if it was real itching or just the creepy crawly feeling that a bug or an insect or some other vermin had gotten between your skin and your clothes. Eventually it subsided, and I went home without a care in the world until my husband texted me that a neighbor’s house had been burglarized earlier, and then the creepy crawly sensation followed me home. 

*****

It’s the next day now and I'm sitting in a conference room. And when I say "conference room," don't picture your average table and chairs with screens and projectors and telecom equipment. This is the single fanciest conference room I have ever seen. It 's large. I'm not going to count, but I think it seats about 90 people, in 7 rows arranged in semi-circular theater-style tiers. One side of the room is almost entirely windows that look out onto a semi-nice view of a brand-spanking-new building, a patio, and some trees. The light is excellent. The other walls are paneled in light wood. Each seat has its own table space, with charging stations and push-to-talk microphones. There is a large podium on a semi-circular dais at the front, backed by absolutely gigantic, Super Bowl-sized screens. 

We learned, when we arrived for this day-long offsite event, that we are the first group to ever use this brand-new room. No wonder it smells so new. Some of the chairs still have tags on them, including the one that I'm sitting in, which is exceptionally comfortable for a conference room chair. I'm very likely the first person ever to sit in this chair. It's quite excellent. Even the soap in the bathroom feels luxurious. 

This is the advantage of working for a very well-funded foundation. I myself don't make a lot of money but I don't need a lot of money. But it's nice to work in beautiful surroundings, even for a day. But speaking of work, the break is over. Time to return to meeting mode. 

*****

It’s Friday now. The meeting ended before 4 yesterday, leaving me free for a bit before it was time to head to my son’s baseball game. It would not have made sense, driving route-wise, for me to return home and then drive to the game. So I shopped for a bit. 

The thing about shopping now is not just that I can’t find things, it’s that I don’t WANT things. It’s quite freeing, although I do feel a sense of loss because the not wanting of things is related to being older and not wanting to be burdened with stuff. I watched young women and girls hopefully browsing the racks of clothing at Nordstrom, sure that they’ll find the top or the dress that will change the course of their lives or at least the course of their summers. I wish them the best and I wouldn’t trade places with them for a kajillion dollars. 

A gazillion, maybe. But not a kajillion. 

I finished shopping and drove to my son’s game without incident, watched a few innings, and got in my car to return home. I was in the car for the next 2.5 hours. After a terrible accident, Maryland 200 was closed in both directions, and I was stuck there, with all of the other unfortunate commuters, until we actually finally all u-turned in the middle of the highway and drove down the wrong side of the road and got off at the first exit, hoping that the oncoming lanes would be properly blocked.

It was really a bit terrifying. For a long time, there were no police directing the traffic. People just started turning around. People were getting out of their cars to take photos, just as others were u-turning to try to escape down the shoulder. Eventually, I heard on the radio that police up ahead at the scene of the accident had begun to turn people around and so I took it on faith that this was the best and only escape route, and that I’d just have to pray that I’d be able to figure out how to safely exit a major highway from the wrong direction, using an on ramp to exit. Terrifying. 

*****

All’s well that ends well. I guess. No one was hurt in the burglary, and the miscreants didn’t get away with anything especially valuable. One person died in the accident and although that's one too many, it could have been so much worse. And I got home eventually.

But I still have the creepy crawlies. That's two minor mishaps in one week and the last time I experienced two minor mishaps in one week, something awful happened later that same week. It's Saturday now and I'm not usually superstitious in any area of life other than Washington Capitals hockey, but I won't be at ease until this week is officially over. 

But who am I kidding? I’m never at ease, no matter the circumstances. Low-level fear and anxiety is my default setting, and so this is just another day. Even after this week ends, I'll find something else to worry about next week. Interest rates are climbing but I am still borrowing trouble.