a tough day at the office

And by “tough” I mean just about the most fun you could have in a day and get paid for it.*

*Disclaimer: keep it clean, people.

I’m a Creative Director for a company that I’ve been at for 12 years. The universe was definitely on my side the day I found this place and the only way I’m leaving is if they drag me out kicking and screaming. I get to do what I love day in and day out, and work with some total rock stars in the process.

Hello, dream job? I think I love you.*

*Disclaimer: this is not a sponsored post. I will not be getting any extra days of vacation for talking so highly of my employer. And also? I know for a fact that my boss doesn’t read my blog so I’d be wasting my breath if I were using this as a forum to impress her. Don’t worry, it doesn’t offend me that she doesn’t stop by. Managing me is kind of a full-time job. Give that woman a raise, stat.

Anyway, I digress. I’ve told you before about this nice lady in the office who brings us special things on a consistent and regular basis.

In addition to her in-office gift-bearing, she also organizes our company summer party. It was held yesterday on a picturesque organic farm with fresh eats and flowing wine.

This woman knows her audience.

We sort of had to work for it, though. It was a team-building exercise and we were divided into groups, where each group prepared one course of our lavish meal (there were two appetizers, a salad, a main course, a side dish, and – of course – let’s not forget dessert).

I didn’t mind doing my share, though. At the risk of getting hate mail, I rarely (if ever) cook at home so it was kind of a novelty. Plus, we didn’t have to do the dishes. Wait, I don’t do those at home, either.

Moving on before I lose my audience here….

It was an absolutely beautiful day enjoyed by all. We laughed, we cried. Well, I wasn’t working the onion station so I didn’t cry. But still, it was group bonding at its finest.

I’ll stop rambling and show you some fun pictures from our little outdoor soirée.*

*Disclaimer: alright, fine. I won’t stop rambling, but you will have visuals. There’s something for everyone.

Here’s the sign at the farm entrance that I forgot to get a picture of on the way in so the driver had to slam on his brakes and jostle a busload of my sleepy co-workers on our way out as I ran down the aisle, frantically waving my arms at him to stop. This must be what photo journalists feel like when they are trying to get the “money shot”.

If you tell me we’re going to a farm, I’ll come prepared. Never mind that it was the warmest day we’ve had so far this summer and I managed to sweat through my socks in the rubber ovens boots I was wearing. I was ready for action. And mud puddles. Or cow pies.

We wore name tags in case we forgot who we were by the end of the day. Also, so we could learn a bit about each other’s personalities by which name tag question each person chose. Here’s mine.

I’ve only heard SECOND-HAND that this is a good cure. Totally not from personal experience. Swear.

That is really apple juice. They only had wine glasses to pour it in. What was I supposed to do?

The company that hosted our shenanigans was really fantastic. They were great people with lots of patience.

Why yes, I WOULD like a fresh-picked radish with BUTTER ON IT. Also, I’ll take your biceps in a to-go bag. Please and thank you.

Before getting to work, we got a quick tour of the lovely property. Here we are in the steam room greenhouse. A tad uncomfortable to stand in when you’re wearing rubber boots but GREAT for unclogging your pores.

It’s always important to hold up the rest of the group stop and smell the roses. Or dahlias. Or whatever these things are. I’m not really much of a gardener, either.

Here are the remains of what we prepared for lunch. Tasted just like chicken.

Alright, time to get to work. I was part of the Salad Team. It’s hard to tell from this blurry picture (action shot) but look at how I toiled over those cherries! I even stained my fingers!

The fruits of my labor:

Are cherries a fruit? Or a berry? Either way, they were deliciously pit-free.

Look at us! Mixing salad is fun! Weeeeeee!

It’s all fun and games until it’s time to start plating. And then it’s serious business, people.

Time to sit down and enjoy our hard work! They really shouldn’t have trusted me though with such a crisp, bright white table and a glass of red wine, I mean grape juice. It was a recipe for disaster.

 Our little salad, all grown up. Awwww. Isn’t it cute? We were like proud parents. Well, except I don’t know a lot of parents that eat their young, but that’s not a very savory topic for lunchtime.

Here’s the main course. It was alright, I guess. I mean, hard to follow that salad, but still. It was edible.*

*Disclaimer: just kidding, it was super delicious.

Last but not least, the dessert! The berry crisp in the foreground was pretty good, too.

Wave good bye to all the nice folks on my blog, everyone! Bye bye!

No wait, let’s try that again. I should have you say hello. That seems friendlier. Say hello
to my blog friends, everyone! Hello! (Such good sports they are).

In summary, I have “buy more elastic-waist pants” front and center on my to-do list.

What’s your favorite type of sweet treat? I’d love to hear from you!