The beatings will continue until morale improves!

I'm not looking all that forward to this afternoon's rescheduled faculty/staff appreciation thing. For one, I've heard it through the grapevine that the "fabulous gifts" are complete shit (he was sworn to secrecy as to what they are but he's not the type to mislead). We've also heard that they're actually going to recycle the week plus old popcorn and feed it to us. Additionally, we're going to have to file outside and get nametags and tickets then sit outside and listen to the higher ups bluster about bullshit at length before they'll bother to give us the promised shit prizes. It's like forced mingling. Yes, attendance is optional, but you know that it really kind of isn't optional since it's "expected" that you show up and put on a happy face.

On a personal note, I'm not looking forward to this afternoon since I really don't want to run into the guy I recently blocked on FB. Fortunately he's not tried to contact me via other means so I'm crossing fingers that either he's not showing up to this thing today or that he'll leave me be. Since it's outside and it's sunny today, it'll help a bit that I'll wear my sunglasses and maybe a hat (oo - like a celebrity!).

Anyhoo, it is so typical of this place that to show their "appreciation" for our dedication or some such hoo-ha that instead of giving us a little monetary bonus or sending everyone gift cards to someplace, it has to be some sort of self-serving bombastic "party" that no one here down in the trenches really wants and as usual, is tossed together all half-assed but we'd better appreciate our appreciation and not complain, daggonit! 

Lameness accomplished

Ah, it was just as lackluster as anticipated. The "gift" was a bell but not a cowbell. I've a feeling they had a LOT of swag left over from the Rutgers 250 celebration that they recycled on us

Keys for scale. Yeah it's "cute" but the University led us to believe that they had a big ol' stash of money to do right by everyone with fancy parties. Since our admin wanted me to pick up her gift and I didn't want mine, I left it on her desk. Oh and the "prizes" were things like t-shirts from old promotions and cheap coffee mugs. I didn't stick around long enough to see if I won any more useless clutter.

The food was clearly left over - if not from last week, from a slightly more recent event. Stale soft pretzels, stale popcorn, stale brownies - I didn't bother to eat anything. Thankfully I had eaten a decent lunch. They had a volunteer employee from our Camden campus who fancied himself a DJ who needs to not quit his day job. lol.

All in all, they put forth the bare minimum. The table at this thingie that actually was the most put together was our own little Anna who was showing off the turfgrass stuff and serving candied cranberries that she made, grapes and brie and salsa that she made. I knew better than to touch the salsa since it was pretty much all habeneros. But I'll have to say that I'll be having her help us out planning stuff when we have to host folks from other land grant schools on the east coast next October.

And fortunately I didn't see the guy I blocked on FB. Whew!

Love these "Life Where I'm From" videos

They updated with showing a Japanese family restaurant. I'd love to go to one!

Ok, that was pleasant. Now some debate unpleasantness - for as long as I can stomach it