the blues

When guests come to town, my adrenaline rush is pretty high. I've been working towards their visit, planning where they'll go, what they'll see, who they'll meet, and arranging the logistics to keep their day moving. Since the guests yesterday were good acquaintances (not yet at the level of friends), and their good word would help or hinder future activities, I had to make sure that they were kept busy and productive.

A lot of their time was spent going from school to school. I didn't try to overload their schedule, since I wanted them time to meet with students and the counselors, plus enough breaks in between for traffic and any timing problems that may occur in a day. Luckily, the biggest delay happened early on in the day, when C went to Reedley from Manila, after she dropped J and me off at St. Scholastica's. When we met up with her at Reedley, they still had a good hour to get to ISManila.

School visits are always a big question mark from the time I set them up to the time the presentations start. I run the gamut of hope, disappointment or gratitude, irritation and finally release when I prepare for them. I'd rather wait until the school just says "please come over to talk to the students" rather than call them or fax to find out if they have time to meet with international guests.

Maybe I just hate to be told No you can't come over. That always means setting up more appointments to hedge against the ones that cancel at the last minute.

But a good visit can be worth a lot of goodwill and future support, so I keep pressing on, being thankful for the little blessings, and never without a backup plan.

J and C sent over a very nice bouquet to thank me for the work yesterday. It sits in the library, wafting a gentle but persistent fragrance throughout the room. Makes me think of going to Dangwa tonight for flower shopping.

On another note, I will get to see the new townhouse later tonight. I'll take the MRT from Makati and test the timing on public transportation. And of course if I can find the place. I was last there in January, so I'll have to see if I can remember how to get there.

I am toooooo tired to think or work today. I sent off one set of letters and have half-heartedly answered emails from students and parents. What I need is a day of sleep, and I may get some sleep time on Saturday morning before I go register for class.