Wednesday, June 17, 2009

And to Retire

I had a paper-signing kind of morning so was stunned to come to work a little late and find this party set up, with CAKE. I know that my branch manager makes spectacular cakes; its a bit of a hobby with her. This one was so big that I had to ask if it was a box. She assured me that is was a four-sheet layer cake. I thought - who is going to eat all that cake?!


Ian and I were huge fans of the Frasier show, so I
certainly appreciate this sentiment. If you didn't watch the show - never mind.


The staff gathers and I am instructed to cut my cake. Push a little harder, they say. Hmmm, try another spot. Too hard? Go a little lower.
Okay, some-
things not right here. I try several spots on top, then poke the frosting on the sides. It's becoming clear that nothing is cake-like. I scrape the frosting across the top - and it is so too a box.
There, you can see, is what my cake really is, and I'm having a *piece* of it as I type right now. I have been very fortunate to work with powerful and wonderful women. Who else would come up with all of this?!
I wish there were some way I could share the contents of the Slam Book they made for me. They decided it would be better than a card. Oh yeah, right on. You have to click for big to get the cracy authentic details and the custom spiral binding.
You cannot begin to imagine the pages that my book contains, each with answers by one of my co-
workers. This page is "How long have you worked with Sharon?" to which someone responded "Define work" and another - "Who's Sharon?" They thought this would be better than a card. Oh yeah. I laugh harder every time I read through it.
And there you have it. I am in front of my nearly balded work-
station and soon to be no more, as in the Monty Python parrot - this parrot is no more. Me neither.

Retirement, here I come.

18 comments:

Life Looms Large said...

Sounds like a great celebration!! The slam book is hilarious!

Congratulations, and may you have many happy, healthy, wonderful years of your own time!!!

Sue

margene said...

Congratulations!! You are going to be lovin' life!!

Hilary said...

Congratulations!!!!!! You are going to love it.....like I do....I am so happy for you. It is an exciting time. I have said so many times, I can't believe how happy I am to be this old....lol.
The smile on your face tells it all.......awesome!!!!

Valerie said...

Congratulations! Sounds like you're leaving big shoes to fill.

You look wonderfully relaxed in that last photo!

Leigh said...

How fun! Your co-workers are so clever, what a great party.

So. Are you going to be a library volunteer???

vlb5757 said...

What a fun and thoughtful send off into retirement! I love that they put so much thought into everything. You are going to love retirement! It's been fun for me so far.

Lee said...

Did you get a real cake, too? ;-)

What a fun and meaningful send off -- also, great taste in beer!

Congratulations!

beadlizard said...

That cake is hilarious and the slam book is a treasure. Signs of a life well lived.

Wool Enough said...

What a fantastic sendoff. And what a fantastic bunch of co-workers too!

Carolyn Jean Thompson said...

That slam book is a great idea. Really cute. Sounds like you had a wonderful send-off.

Leslie said...

Congratulations, Sharon, on your retirement. What a great send off. I love the "cake"!

~~Sittin.n.Spinnin said...

Hooray for Sharon! Sounds like a great send off :)

bspinner said...

If pictures are worth a thousand words your picture says it all. You look so happy!!!

Best cake I've ever seen. Bet it taste good too.

Sara said...

Congratulations Sharon!

And now, we'll see more of you :).

weavinfool said...

I'm thrilled for you (and jealous too)!
Dig into your fiber and enjoy years of doing whatever you want whenever you want. And whenever you feel at sixes and sevens you can request an Interlibrary Loan and practice being a patron.
Hope to see you come over the mountains to visit.
Congrats!

Marie said...

Alas! The day you've looked forward to for so long. I am so happy and excited for you.

I remember Slam Books from Jr. High School. Both fun and eye opening if I recall. A blast from the past.

Anyway, go and waste time now.

woolydaisy said...

wow! what an awesome cake!!!!!!!! i love it-that's my kind of cake. congrats and let the fun begin!

Robin said...

Your cake - what a great idea!!! Congratulations on your retirement! Enjoy!