I got to the staff meeting ten minutes late. To tell you the truth, that became the plan the moment I got Bob’s 7:00 o’clock call. I can’t begin to express how much I enjoy annoying him. It’s an integral part of our relationship. I bet you he thought he was waking me up with his call earlier. Rest assured that the fact he didn’t, ruined his sunrise let’s-piss-Ray-off exercise.
My excuse for lateness was always the same: “Island time”. In the Caribbean a 9:00 o’clock start time means 9:10, 9:15… Since Bob and I have always encouraged a casual and relaxed work environment, members of my creative team decided to enhance my entrance to the conference room by performing a vocal percussion salsa version of the Mario Brothers’ song. Something they had just seen on YouTube and a tribute to both my childhood passion for the video game and my Island upbringing.
Gina Caulder, the agency’s chief strategist and the Princeton alumnus I mentioned would be at the meeting, was getting ready to start her presentation to the group. We got along well but she didn’t care at all for my antics with punctuality. After Bob expressed his appreciation for my attendance to the meeting in an exaggeratedly sarcastic manner, he passed the baton to Gina. In just 20 minutes she covered every single detail of the Chronologix pitch assignment. The tasks for each team member were laid out and everyone got up and headed back to their work areas.
Bob, Gina and I were the last ones getting out of the conference room. That’s when Bob asked me if I was going to his place the following Saturday to watch the Stanford-Notre Dame football game.
“You mean the Notre Dame-Stanford game?” I said, emphasizing the Notre Dame first sequence.
“Oh my God, that’s this weekend?” asked an amused Gina. “You two better work fast this week, or you’ll be spending YO! Bowl Day at the office.”
YO! Bowl Day was how we referred to that Saturday in the fall when the football teams of Notre Dame and Stanford clashed. It was a big thing for us, and Bob and I always had a wager on it. Not a monetary one but something foolish that the loser had to do in front of an audience.
The last time Stanford lost, Bob had to dress up as a leprechaun and sing the Notre Dame fight song in the agency’s lobby (something similar to what I had seen ESPN’s Mark May do on TV). I took a picture of him and made a blow-up that still hangs in a very visible place in my office. Anyway, I told him that I wasn’t sure I wanted to spend Saturday with a bunch of Stanford alumni and would rather watch the game in a place with a lot less red in it.
“Gina, what are you doing this Saturday? Would you like to watch the Fighting Irish beat… a color? Hey Bob, what’s with the pine tree mascot anyway? The Cardinal color wasn’t intimidating enough so you guys added a tree?” I said.
“As much fun as that sounds,” said Gina with a hint of her signature sarcasm before Bob could answer my taunts, “I have aunt duty this weekend.”
“What do you mean aunt duty?” I asked.
“My older sister will be out of town and her kids will be staying with their favorite aunt in the whole world,” she said.
“So, you’re free this weekend,” I said with a smirk. A remark that earned me a slap in the arm.
“Ok, that’s my cue. I’ll see you guys later,” said Bob as he left the room.
“I promised them we’d do some camping,” said Gina, now talking solely with me.
“I didn’t know you liked camping. Where are you taking them?”
“Oh, I hate camping. I find the whole experience extremely uncomfortable. What the kids and I do is put up a couple of sheets, tent-like, in the living room and settle under them in sleeping bags. We even watch scary movies like “Casper” and “Ghostbusters,” she said amused by the whole idea.
Gina was a very strong professional woman. A fierce civil rights activist in her spare time, she kept the softer side of her very private. The fact that she was sharing this with me made me feel special. We had dated a few times and it was always great, but there was still some hesitation on both parts. Maybe it was fear of damaging something that, so far, felt quite good. Anyway, I saw an opportunity and decided to go for all the marbles as I invited myself to a party I wasn’t included in:
“That sounds like a lot of fun,” I said. “What if I went over and grilled some BBQ food in order to add some outdoor cooking to the whole in-house camping experience? Do you think the kids would like it?”
“Well, I’m not sure about the kids but their aunt will certainly appreciate the gesture, and the help,” she said smiling.
“It’s a date then.” Now I was really looking forward to YO! Bowl Day.