Round Three Down

It's curious. A week ago, I was anxious about heading off to Princeton for the third installment of this group leadership meeting. I had other pressing work concerns preying on my mind. I had things at home that I needed to attend to. My world was 180 degrees away from what I was expected to accomplish at another five days of a corporate meeting. Yet, the second I saw the familiar faces of my team members on Sunday night, the concerns of the rest of the world started to ebb away. Sure enough, today when we said goodbye to one another (our last meeting until we reconvene in March 2008), there were copious hugs, kisses (both European and American versions), some misty eyes and many kind words. I do feel tightly bonded to these wonderful and really smart people.

This week's course has been very intense and not as light hearted as the previous two meetings. We've had some nice evenings out to blow off steam, but we didn't have a very late night all week; everyone is very focused on their 2008 budget work and deadlines are prevailing just now. However, last night marked our last night together so we decided to blow it out in style. The group of 20 boarded a train into Manhattan. We had cocktails on the roof top of one of the team member's apartment building., sipping Cosmopolitans in the shadow of the Empire State Building. We then dined in a private room at 11 Madison, a superb restaurant in the Flatiron district. And then, we went off a private dance club in Chelsea where we kicked off our shoes and danced together in a collective affectionate mosh pit. Catching the very last train back to Princeton, we were safely tucked in our beds by 3 am. When we reconvened this morning for work at 8:30 am today, it was painful for all of us. There's some odd comfort knowing your glassy eyed colleague sitting across from you is also feeling like his throat is made of sandpaper.

I'll miss them.