One of the Boys

I’ve never been so inebriated that I’ve passed out, but on Thursday night I came close. After having imbibed two glasses of champagne and a glass of wine, I finished my third bottle of beer. The occasion was the sale of a major division and saying goodbye to people whom I worked with for fifteen years. The festivities started at 3:30 and were still going strong at 7:00 when I left the office. Some of the executives continued the celebration over dinner, but I don’t have their stamina.

Once in a while you have to cut loose in order to show that you’re one of the boys. I know some skilled individuals whose upward mobility was capped because they were LDS (Mormons aren’t supposed to drink). On the other hand, you can’t enjoy yourself so much that you say or do something stupid. And in the age of ubiquitous camera phones, your self-inflicted embarrassments are preserved for posterity.

On Friday, having had only five hours of restless sleep, I awoke with a splitting headache, popped some aspirin and went to the office. Of course, it was one of those days with a lot of interruptions and unscheduled meetings. I stumbled through the day and resolved to lay off the booze….well, at least until the office Christmas party. © 2006 Stephen Yuen

Golden Gate Boys Choir and Bellringers

The Christmas Train brightened up the Friday commute.