Monday, February 18, 2008

Business Trip

"Business trip" sounds so grown up! I don't know why I have such a hard time believing I'm an adult considering I'm 30 years old, but I still think of myself as a 20-year old sometimes.

Anyhoo, this weekend I'm off on a business trip to Portland, OR. When I decided to stay at my job, I was put in charge of the industrial hearing test division of the company. Actually, there wasn't a division until I decided to stay, but that's being a bit pedantic. I'm in charge of making the industrial hearing test division of the company - I set up contracts, perform the tests, send out reports, etc. One of my official titles is Occupational Hearing Conservationist (OHC) and as such I decided to become a member of the National Hearing Conservation Association. Well, this week is the annual NHCA convention, and it is being held in Portland, OR. Hence, the business trip!

The last time I went to a convention was last April when I went to the American Academy of Audiology convention with my boss and his wife. They were having some insurance coding and billing classes, and since Insurance Biller is another one of my official titles, my boss decided I should attend. It was a lot of fun; I love staying in hotel rooms by myself, the classes were very educational (I spent more time in classes than my boss!), and I met a lot of interesting people. It's funny because it was during this convention that I found out that Adam liked me and our relationship started. Huh.

This time, I'm going by myself. I'm flying to Portland Wednesday morning and will be picked up by a woman with whom I've been talking about doing hearing tests for the various locations she has around the state. We're going to go out to lunch and will discuss what her expectations are and finalize prices and dates for the testing. With this contract, I'll be doing a lot of traveling! Yeah! I'm hoping to spend some time with my former mission companion Wednesday night, as well as a few other times when I don't have a class or NHCA event. Again, I love staying in hotel rooms by myself, so I'm really looking forward to that. I'm also excited because I'll be alone at the conference. This will enable me to meet a lot more people than if my boss and his wife were there. When they were with me last year, I talked to them most of the time. With them absent, I'll feel free to mingle and introduce myself to as many people as I want! I can't wait! Events like this really bring out the social butterfly in me that lays dormant a lot more than it used to.

The trip is coming at a good time. I'm starting to freak out just a little about how fast things are going with Anthony. He drops little comments about our life together that make me think his feelings are pretty strong, or that he's making some pretty big leaps. Either way, a little freaky. And a little nice. Sigh. Anyway, a little break will be nice; it will give me a little breathing room and a little time to think without him distracting me with his good looks and charm.

Speaking of, because it's my blog and I can bring up topics that aren't related to the post's title, I invited Anthony over to my mom's house this weekend to hang out with my family. My brother and his fiancee were down, so as many of us that were in town got together and played games. I was very impressed with how well Anthony fit in with my family. I know my mom was a little worried about how to communicate with him, but he's so easy-going and patient that it never seemed to be a problem. I was struck with how happy Anthony seems to be; not only does he make me (and others) laugh, but he laughs a lot. I like that. I'm a naturally happy person, so I like that he seems to be, too. I also noticed that Anthony is a bit competetive. I'm not sure if he's as competetive as our family, but he likes to win. So, he fits in with my family that way as well! It was a fun evening and I thoroughly enjoyed having him there. My family seemed to like him; my future sister-in-law said he was "a hoot" and "really good-looking". What else could you ask for? Okay, there's more, but I'm not there yet.

Back to the subject at hand, my trip to Portland, in case you've forgotten, I'll be gone 'til Sunday night. At one point, my flight was getting in around 6:30 pm. That would have been nice; I could have relaxed a little Sunday evening. The flight changed, though, and now I get home around 10:30 pm. This means I'll get home in time to go to bed, wake up, and go to work. Yeehaw! Oh well, I guess that's the price you pay for an all-expenses paid trip to a city you really enjoy!

9 comments:

Adam said...

I'm excited for you! For this trip and everything else that has been happening recently.

Very cool.

Enjoy Portland!

Melissa said...

A little break from the mundane things of work and a little breather never hurt anyone. Hope you have a GREAT time!

Alyson said...

Oh, I'm jealous!! But also happy for you to have this experience! Have a great time!

tearese said...

Woohoo! A trip! I hope you have a fun time. I know what you mean about not feeling like a grownup. I wonder if our parents felt this way too?
I would be so freaked out to have such an important job, I guess its one of my fears. When I worked in Seattle, I had several oportunities to move up in the company and get a more important job than I had, but I prefered to stay in the lowly job I had to avoid the stress. Pretty silly, I know.
Good luck with everything!

Cassie said...

So exciting. I want to go on a business trip. Maybe in the fall, but it's only to California and definitely not for sure. Have fun to getting to know all the new people.

julie said...

Thanks, Madman. I'm so glad we're still friends.

Melissa, "break from the mundane things of work" is exactly how I feel. Nicely put.

Aly, someday you, Cassie, and I will have to go on a trip together!! This summer??? :)

Tearese, the stress certainly takes its toll sometimes, but it's been nice to ease into some of the bigger responsibilities. In fact, giving me more responsibilities is one of the ways my boss got me to stay!

Cassie, I hope you get to go on your business trip! There's something cool about going somewhere on someone else's dime. Then again, I may just be immature. :)

Cardine said...

One thing that's really cool about this is that you contemplated moving to Portland at one point. Interesting that by staying where you are, you are still able to go to Portland for your job! It's like the best of both worlds. You get to be in Portland AND you get to be around your family. (and me)

Framed said...

Dang, miss a blog for a few weeks and suddenly, you're completely out of touch. Now I'm up-to-date and dying to hear how the trip turned out. BTW I love to stay alone in hotel rooms also.

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