Nothing for the Worry

Tonight I had my very first public meeting without a project manager by my side to take the heat. Let's be honest, I was a bit nervous. Dragon was there to step in if need be. However, his presence, while comforting, also makes me even more nervous - I hate to make myself look like an ass in front of random people, much less someone I idolize. ("Idolize" I realize is a strong word, but in truth, everyone who really knows the man idolizes him. No joke. No exaggeration.)
So anyway, the minor amount of fretting I allowed myself was in absolute vain. We got there, we sat down, our case was presented, our case was denied. It was an ugly scene, but not the kind of ugly scene that I was responsible for. In fact, no one was responsible. Every hand in the room was tied, but the hands of one. And I swear that if his hands had not been clearly visible while he was lecturing to the small group gathered in the hearing room, I would certainly have thought something nasty was going on under the table. Some people love the taste of their own power, no matter how ill-conceived it is. I'm off subject. My point is (if you can call this a point) that I left the public meeting having neither conquered nor succumbed to the arena. That'll have to wait for another day.