Today, I got a phone call from an old colleague of mine from ExxonMobil. Bruce and I worked together for several years, and I always enjoyed bantering with him, and the business trips we took together. He was a Project Manager, and I was his Technical Advisor - providing support by reviewing various reports and consultant recommendations, and formulating strategies to negotiate with the regulatory agencies. Bruce is an absolute hoot. He retired in December of 2020 and I wrote him a poem in honor of the occasion, which I delivered over a farewell Zoom party that our entire group had dialed in to.
All of Bruce's contact information was on my ExxonMobil computer and when I abruptly resigned last year - my mind just wasn't in the "space" of moving contact information to my personal computer. Bruce lives in Tampa, Florida - so he was in my thoughts all last week as Hurricane Ian was bearing down on the west side of the state. I reached out to another old colleague - who provided me his information - and I shot him an email over the weekend, just to let him know that I was thinking of him and his family and praying they were all safe. Within a day he replied to let me know that YES thankfully, they were all safe, and he was so happy to hear from me. He asked how my family was doing - how my mom was doing (he had met my mom, Mary, on one of our trips!) and how life was treating me these days at ExxonMobil. I shot back a quick note that read,
"In an absolutely crazy twist of fate, while we were on another of our awesome road trips last summer, we were visiting the idyllic town of Burlington Vermont, checking out colleges for the triplets and we decided to stay. We never went back to Texas ... I resigned after 20 years with ExxonMobil and all four kids started school from the Airstream. After nearly 8 weeks, we moved in to a rental house, and slept in sleeping bags for an additional two months until our furniture was moved north. True story. There's a little more to it, I'll fill you in on the details when you have a chance to give me a call!"
Within 24 hours, Bruce called and said that he read my note over and over again - and finally just had to call to make sure he read what I had written correctly. When I told him the details of what had happened, how I had been put it in the lowest rank group, he was shocked. (It always makes me feel so good to hear the indignation from others at what I consider my mistreatment.) I told him, "You know I have triplets right? It was a shock to hear that we would be having three babies. BUT NOTHING, and I MEAN NOTHING, could have shocked me more than to hear that I was in the NSI bucket at ExxonMobil! Within a couple days, we signed a lease on a rental house in Vermont and hired my good friend to sell our house in Texas." Bruce was in disbelief, and awe, at our fearlessness. I told him, it wasn't *exactly* fearless ... I had some pretty rough times where I second guessed everything. But, I held strong and had faith in me, and Charlie ... and our kids who have thrived beyond what I could have imagined.
Two weeks ago, I actually flew down to Texas for the first time - since I left on vacation in June of 2021, to attend a conference at the ExxonMobil headquarters in Houston. (aka: my old office.) It was the first time my feet had been on Texas soil since we rolled out of town with the Airstream and a rack full of bicycles, on that fateful day, June 17, 2021.
I told Bruce that before my business trip, I went to a local farm, and brought nearly 20 pounds of maple syrup in little tiny 1.5-oz "nip" bottles so that I could tote them in my carry-on luggage. During my two days there, I had my day bag stuffed each day with the maple syrup nips, and I handed them out to various old friends that I saw. As it turned out, I had handed out all the nips - with only one remaining - and I as I was walking out the door to catch my Uber to the airport, I bumped in to the Global Manager. The Manager I had spoken to who told me to please pivot and come back to Texas. The one who had told me I was a valued employee and they needed me. The one that I told that if I was so valued, why did they allow me to be put in that bottom rank group?
That manager got my last bottle of maple syrup, and as I handed it to him, I said, "While I do miss everyone, this was the best decision I could have ever made for my family... life really is sweeter in Vermont!"
Upon hearing this, Bruce howled with laughter and said, "Damn. You have got to write a book. I'm not even kidding, I'd buy it and read the whole thing!"
Sounds fun. But I wouldn't even know where to begin.
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