January 20, 2004 - Weekend Retreat

The Gryphon and I had prepared for the weekend by ordering a swimsuit for him from Land's End. I'd suggested it would be a good idea to hit the hotel hot tub. As it turned out, this was a terrific idea. After he got out of a meeting Friday night, we hit the hot tub.

The hot tub felt especially luxurious, because the hotel was so cold. The hotel must not be designed for winter accomodation. They had a lot of huge windows without any curtains, and it let in cold breezes, especially at night. But the hot tub took care of any lingering chills. We went back and forth between the hot tub and the pool until the pool closed.

For the rest of the evening, we hung out in the lobby talking to various groups of people, nursing a few drinks from the bar and sharing stories. There were quite a few that involved jousting, because at least two members of staff participate in Renaissance fairs and are in knight training.

In fact, one had recently been promoted from a squire to a knight. He was walking around with his knight's helmet and a sheathed sword, jokingly referring to them as his "spear and magic helmet."

Our friend Teep shared the results of her Tanning Project, which was a really soft and stretchable leather. I'm sure they'll make fantastic deerskin pants.

I caught up a little with my ex-boyfriend, whom I hadn't seen since the last business meeting we'd all attended. It occurs to me that I'd never given him a nickname, like I did with exes such as Leechboy and the Luser, both of whom clearly deserved them. I'll call him The Invisible Man, because of his resemblance to the lead character of the Ralph Ellison novel, and because he often prefers to fade into the background and people watch.

Anyway, not much had changed for The Invisible Man, but he seemed to be pleased to hear about what had changed for me, including my new car and dating The Gryphon.

The next morning, The Gryphon and I got up early to use the hot tub and then to swim laps in the swimming pool before breakfast. It was my idea, but he gladly went along with it and even enjoyed himself. I suggested that maybe this summer we see about a local pool membership, to get regular, fun exercise together.

Most of Saturday was taken up in various business meetings. By 6 p.m., business was complete and we got to enjoy ourselves at a private dinner.

Now, I'm a telecommuter, so I work at home wearing exercise pants most days. I look forward to the opportunity to dress up. So it didn't bother me at all that I was wearing a skirt while most around me wore jeans and T-shirts. I was happy, though, to get a number of compliments on my vintage Hawaiian coat, which looks vaguely Chinese in design.

After dinner was social hour. Some people gathered in rooms to play board games or video games. Others gathered in a room set up to show videos. The Gryphon and I started talking to people and ended up drifting to the back corner of the hotel bar, where we gossiped and shared stories from college.

At one point, I got up to use the bathroom and ended up listening to a piano player who hopes to perform at Otakon this year. He was surrounded by rapt listeners, making requests.

I also spoke to a staffer who goes by the nickname Ranma. He told me about his recent trip to Japan with his family, and he sold me a CD and some Japanese candy he'd bought while he was there. I was happy to buy them, since he's a college student and I remember how tight money was back then.

When the bar closed, a few of us went to bed and a few others joined us, to sit on a couch in the lobby by the fireplace. That evening I was actually warm, since both the bar and the fireplace were comfortable.

The Gryphon started to fade and went to bed. I told him I'd be up soon and stayed up awhile longer. People began to share stories of silly things coworkers had done. Finally, I said my good-nights.

Our final morning there was abbreviated, since there was really only time to have breakfast, check out and maybe hang out awhile longer. At this point, wet snow was falling, and we started to worry about the trip back. We said good-bye to people and started heading out the door, only to start talking to more people before finally getting on the road.

We got back safely. We went to dinner and saw Big Fish, which is an absolutely fantastic movie and got me thinking about all of my family's stories.

Monday, Martin Luther King Day, we took our own personal retreat at my place, since The Gryphon had the day off for the federal holiday. I picked up my doggie, Una, from the vet, where she'd been boarded. She was tired, probably from barking constantly, and slept the entire day.

We rented High Art, which isn't the happiest movie, although it was nice to relax and see a film together. I took a few extra assignments from work, because they contacted me. The Gryphon didn't mind. We ordered some pizza, and he came by periodically and gave me back massages.

That, ironically, was the most relaxing day of the entire relaxing weekend.

 

Moral:
A little time away refreshes the spirit, especially if there's a hot tub.