November 18, 1999
So, I went home yesterday fully expecting that Keith would be there already (I worked late) and that he would know whether he had the job or not.
Clearly, I underestimate the level of cosmic humor that exists in the universe.
I got home and the house was still dark. Arrgh, no Keith. The bus must have taken longer than I thought. What do do, what to do? I couldn't settle down because I was so anxious to know whether he had the job or not. I paced around the living room a few times and then thought of a great idea! I know, I'll meet him at the bus stop!
I had to carefully consider which bus stop I would wait at. The 125th and 130th stops are equidistant from our house, more or less. However, I knew that Keith was coming from the south and so would get to the 125th stop first. Also, it was a marginally shorter walk from the 125th stop. Keith is a pretty logical guy, so I figured there was no way he'd get off at 130th. It just wouldn't make sense.
Well, it's Seattle in November, so it was dark and raining. I put on boots and an overcoat and a hooded sweatshirt and set out. I parked the car as near to the bus stop as I could and got out to go wait.
Boy, was it wet. And cold. The first bus drove up and deposited its passengers.. two Hispanic guys and a 12-year-old girl. No Keith. Sigh, maybe the next bus.
More rain, cold, and general misery, until the next bus. I amused myself by watching the traffic signals and the people who were trying in vain to cross the street against them. Finally, the next bus.. a tall guy who looks SORT of like Keith.. is it? No. And another Hispanic guy. No Keith.
How long have I been out here? Like twenty minutes? That's not nearly enough, what if he doesn't show up until eight? But wait, what if there's some weird bus stop that I don't know about that goes up Greenwood and he got off there? Maybe I should go home and see if he's there. But wait, what if his bus comes while I'm at home checking for him? All that time will have been wasted. Argh, what do I do?!?
I decided that I would wait for one more bus and then right after it left, I'd race home, check for Keith, and then race back before the next bus arrived. I waited anxiously for the next bus... and waited.... and waited. It was late. It didn't show up for 20 minutes. Finally, it pulled in.. an old woman got off. No Keith. OK! Here we go!
I RAN back to the car, and RACED back home, probably breaking several traffic laws in the process. I immediately noticed that there were some new lights on in the house. Hmm.
Sure enough, Keith was home. He'd wanted to get groceries, so he got off at 130th instead of 125th so he could go to the store. He was very appreciative of my gesture, though.
I didn't care. I wanted the job news. HOW DID IT GO? I asked him. He said, "Well, it went OK."
ME
What do you mean? Did you get the job?
KEITH
Uh, it went well.. they liked my paper!
ME
OK, good, but DID YOU GET THE JOB?!
KEITH
Oh. Well, didn't you get the message on the machine?
ME
Yeah, it said "call us back".
KEITH
Well?
ME
That tells me nothing. Could you maybe tell me, like sometime today?
KEITH
Oh, well, they had to discuss amongst themselves or something, they said they'd let me know.
ME
AAAAAAAAAAAUGH!!
I was an emotional wreck after a whole day of waiting for the news and then finding out I had to wait ALL NIGHT TOO. It was almost too much for me. I kept grilling Keith about how the meeting went, trying to figure out if the signs pointed to "we like him, he's hired" or "um, he's a freak, we're not calling him back". I fretted. I grilled. I questioned. I drove Keith crazy. It's amazing he didn't kill me.
So the next morning I wanted him to call them back before I left for work, but he said he'd left a message on voice mail and they'd get back to him. Argh. I left for work, 40 minutes late.
All in all, it was a draining experience. It's a miracle I survived it, really.
Oh yeah, he got the job. But I'll tell you all about it tomorrow.