Posted by lydia on January 18, 1999 at 08:32
In Reply to: Re: Conversation, and a full bladder posted by Sailor on January 17, 1999 at 16:15
scrivener's "snappish" label describes me well. so how do i cope with meetings and a full bladder? this comes up pretty frequently, especially in the last year or so when i've tended to more consciously delay those trips to the powder room (i first typed "power room" :-)) - all in the interest of work efficiency, of course.
i have fairly lengthy (3+ hours) meetings about once a month with my dozen business partners. these usually begin with lunch brought into the office and being announced just as i'm in the middle of a project,with no chance to hit the restroom before the meeting. i'm one of the more active participants in the discussions, but after a morning of hot chocolates or decaf coffees and then a few cans of "snapple" raspberry tea or diet coke with lunch, i do sometimes find it harder and harder to keep my focus.
for a while i'll sit calmly at the conference table, paying more and more careful attention to how i shift in my chair to look at others around the table as they speak, trying not to upset my bladder control. i'm one who doesn't reveal a lot of distress unless you know what to look for - not wild bouncing, but a little heel tapping and eventually jaw clenching. in the meetings where i really need to pay attention but can't due to circumstances, i'll finally blurt out some nonsense and then say something like, "i would have made that point more coherently but i really think we could use a BREAK now?"
my partners (more men than women) all tolerate my lack of subtlety quite well, and will chuckle when i make a show of rushing for the door. it's always nice to come back to the meetings after finally getting to the restroom and releasing all that pent up tension with the wonderful relaxation of just letting go, not hurriedly pushing, but pissing in a long steady stream in a way that feels passive, almost like letting gravity suck it out. and the inevitable accompanying thoughts of warm, wet sex make for a nice contrast with the meeting's thoughts of personnel management or high finance. :-)
it's pretty amusing when my female partners are in similar straights - and a break results in all 3 stalls being used by women happily sighing with relief.
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