Stoffel

My Dear Princess, Loulou and Fellows,

I keep forgetting to mention morning teas to you. The reason I feel it is important to bring them up, is that Kiwis are OBSESSED with them. It is a big part of office life here. 

It is so weird. It sounds like such an English thing. Yet occasionally in Kiwi offices, there will be a ripple of excitement because someone has organised a "morning tea". And everyone rushes off to have coffee and cake. 

It's like someone having a birthday in the office. But with no birthday.

Gromit, Fazzy and I had a morning tea yesterday to poll our colleagues on what name to assign to what meeting room. This is just the first in a series of morning teas Fazzy and I will be organising around New Zealand as we travel around.

But not for the next 3 weeks. This morning it was confirmed I will be FREED from Project Bumpaddle after 3 weeks, but until May 24th I am stuck in shitty project Purgatory. 

That's all right. I was on RX for FIVE EFFING YEARS.

As you know, I made some of the best friends of my life on RX. And the chances are, if you are reading this, you are two of them. 

And then of course I became mates with Princess Normal on the STP project. And while that was at times a very stressful project, it was totally worth it to bring her into my life. 

Today, after the all-day workshop Gromit took me and Other BA for drinks to blether*. 

I felt very stupid, I must admit, as both of them are very scientific and discussed bending space, time, gravity, quarks and such. I do not have a mind for such things.

But if they ever want to know what Duran Duran's follow-up album to "Rio" is, I'm totally there.

Gromit said she was so happy that she and I and Fazzy have bonded and become mates. And this surprised me because, as I have said before, I thought she had dozens of friends. Maybe more. 

She explained that no, it's just something she's learned. To make people feel special. 

"I don't know why EVERYONE doesn't do it," she explained. She learns things about everyone and talks to them about it. And people just LIKE her for it. 

It's not my way. Or at least it didn't used to be. But I see her doing it, and I see how she makes people feel valued. I'm honestly astonished. I don't know if I could ever be like Gromit. I'm just not that brave.  

But it's a behaviour that even she had to learn. She told me a few stories over beer** and I realised that her confidence, exuberance and sunny demeanour isn't due to naivety as I had thought. It's her conscious response to bitter experience. 

It is honestly blowing my mind a bit. 

I'm glad we are friends. And a little bit proud too. I'm proud to have all of you as my mates, and it is nice to be able to add Fazzy and Gromit to the list. 

Yes, I've had a few beers.

Gromit, who is now as aware of you as you are of her, said it would be funny if I told you we'd had one of those drunken, "OH MY GOD YOU'RE THE BEST I JUST EFFING LOVE YOOOOOOOOO" chats. And then she posed for the picture in the extra. 

And now my thoughts are with my lovely Princess Normal. I hope you and your family are all right today. I don't know if it helps but there is someone on the other side of the world, who thinks about you not just today but every day. And yes, I do effing love yoooooo. 

S.

* We went to the "Honey Badger" bar. 

As you may remember, I told Gromit about Stoffel the Honey Badger on a trip to Christchurch last year and she LOVED that story. And gave me the nickname, "Stoffel". 

Whenever a new team member joins the project, she makes them watch the video about Stoffel the Honey Badger. Yesterday she did this as part of the workshop and narrated it in her thickest South African accent. 

** Hers was non-alcoholic. Mine, not so much.