The End of the Telethon Look

As some of you may know, when I am in a formal dress situation, either a formal event, or now mostly work related affairs, I often have a specific look by the end. This is where I have unbuttoned my collar, undone my tie, and have it hanging around my neck, with my suit jacket still on. I call this my, "End of the telethon" look, as it is how Jerry Lewis and many of the beleaguered TV hosts look at the end of a grueling 48+ hour telethon.

Today, this look returned and with it a funny story. At around 5:50 on this beautiful Saturday morning, I have the privilege of getting up and reporting to the semi-annual faculty meeting, which I have to help run. My job for the most part is to help ensure that the A/V for the day works smoothly and that anyone having a special breakout session with their academic discipline has what they need throughout the day.

By 2:45, the day is mostly over and I am just waiting for some equipment to return so I can pack up and go home... in fact I am waiting for only 1 piece of equipment and am getting very excited. By 3:15, my excitement has turned to anger and the real exhaustion of the day and my 5 hours of sleep per night for the last week is beginning to kick in. To help remedy the situation, I decided to don, "The Look" and make a comment that it is nearing the end of the telethon to my colleagues. Obviously, I had to explain myself and they all kind of laughed....

By 3:45, we were still waiting and the session that needed the equipment was still not over and someone asked me, "Does this mean the Telethon is still going? Did we make our goal?" I replied, "The telethon is over! We did NOT make our goal, and the children are dead!"

My friend's response was, "Maybe you are taking this job a little too seriously."

Oh well... that's me.