company picnics . . .

so today i had to go play the political game at our annual company "luau". so the story goes that our company was *founded* by two friends as they sat on a beach in hawaii. so every year around the time of that conversation we have a luau. usually it's held at some random place and usually on a weekday toward the end of the workday but this year our COO decided to host it at his house on a saturday so folks could bring their families. i was not sure i was going to make it but got a call from my boss offering to drive me. now very few of the people in our usual circle were going to be there so she was hoping she could convince me to join her and her husband. i really like her so i told her i'd think about it. well today i got all the things done i wanted to get done so i decided it would be a good *political* move for me to attend. it was as expected. the cliques emerged early and the kids were all wound up. we were there for less time than it actually took us to *drive* out to the scary 'burbs. just driving through that neighborhood made me uncomfortable. we came and went but we did at least show.