You say it's your birthday! (Na na na na na na, na na!)
Well friends, it was quite the birthday weekend.
Maria, Allan, and Sarah all rolled into town on Friday and left at various times on Monday. Allan, actually, hasn't truly left. He's staying at his cousin's house just down the road from me, so this morning we had some breakfast together. It kind of showed me what it would be like to have an actual, reliable friend who lived in town, and it really made me lonely. I mean, it was a bit much, having 3 friends stay here for the whole weekend. Sunday night, I was a bit cranky because I had wanted to go to a bar - I had wanted to do it Saturday night too - and it fell through both times. That, added with the fact that I had 3 friends sleeping in my living room and thus, throwing off my little, quiet routine made me just want to sit in a dark room for a little bit by myself. It's stressful, I think, having out of town company. You're still in your house, so you feel like everything should be normal, but it's all thrown out of whack.
In any case, we had a roaring good time, even without the bar. We spent a good chunk of time at the beach which is slowly becoming my favourite place in Cleveland. I really do think that if I wind up staying here permanently, I'd like to get a house on the lake. Expensive, I'm sure, but worth it. We went to a bunch of good restaurants, tried to watch my Perseids meteor showed - a bit of a failure...Allan claims he saw a really good shooting star, but I think it was a lightening bug, no matter what he says. I think I saw a few, but given the fact that I don't know for certain, you can tell that they weren't too impressive. Sunday was party day. My whole family turned out for it, which went better than I expected. Truth be told, I was nervous all night on Saturday, worrying about what might or might not happen. No one really spoke to each other - Iselin kind of spoke to the air instead of my mom, and the only interaction I saw between my parents was when my dad asked Mom where he should put his garbage - but that also means there weren't any fights. My friends report that my family at the very least said goodbye to one another and that my mom shook people's hands. So it's a step, I suppose. Getting everyone into one location and not having any arguments or hurt feelings, that's a good thing. Plus, when I spoke to both my mom and my dad, they felt individually that it had gone well. Maybe by the time my 30th birthday rolls around, we'll be able to really have fun.
25. A quarter of a century. It seems like such a short span of time, but I feel a bit old too. Today, I'm tired. I'm tired of looking at my to-do list, I'm tired of searching for a job, and I'm tired of the job I have now. I keep scouring the paper and websites and seeing jobs that I'm definitely not qualified for or that I'm too qualified for.
Well slap my ass and call me Sally - just as I put the period on that sentence, my phone rang. A woman from CASE - a great university just down the road - called me to schedule an interview! It's exciting even being called for a position. It's not until next week, but that's fine. It gives me no small measure of joy to think that I might be able to have a job that I actually like soon...or at least, that I can leave this one behind. Plus, CASE is an excellent school. If I could get a job there, it's possible I could keep moving up the ladder and maybe be able to work for their counseling department when I get my masters.
So that's good news. I miss my friends...I truly do. It would be so nice to have all of you - or any of you - living in town. I loved having 3 of my 5 closest friends here for the weekend. Wouldn't it be wonderful not to have friends who need to sleep on my uncomfortable pull-out sofa bed, who could - at the end of a fun night - say, "Alright, I'm heading home"? I would appreciate that. That's yet another reason to be psyched for this interview...the idea of a new job gives me hope that I might be able to befriend some of my co-workers. God, that would be grand.
Birthdays are good things, I think. Some of my families don't celebrate every one of their child's birthdays, and I think that's a shame. Everyone deserves a day when the people who love them say, "We think you're wonderful. We are so happy that you were created and born, that you've made it this far, and that we've gotten to be a part of it. We love having you around." Sure, the presents are nice - but screw the presents, they're not the important part. I could be perfectly happy without getting any presents...I just like having the people I care about in one place. Brandon stopped by and gave me a pot of moon lillies and speariment...and really, it just made me break out in smiles. I think it's nice, that for both of our birthdays we gave each other something living, something that we could care for and appreciate. Tonight, when it cools off a bit, I'll go plant them alongside the morning glories he gave me - which are thriving.
I'm happy it was my birthday. I'm happy so many people came or called or left me a message wishing me well. It makes the little days - like today, that are quiet and soothing, even more precious.
Maria, Allan, and Sarah all rolled into town on Friday and left at various times on Monday. Allan, actually, hasn't truly left. He's staying at his cousin's house just down the road from me, so this morning we had some breakfast together. It kind of showed me what it would be like to have an actual, reliable friend who lived in town, and it really made me lonely. I mean, it was a bit much, having 3 friends stay here for the whole weekend. Sunday night, I was a bit cranky because I had wanted to go to a bar - I had wanted to do it Saturday night too - and it fell through both times. That, added with the fact that I had 3 friends sleeping in my living room and thus, throwing off my little, quiet routine made me just want to sit in a dark room for a little bit by myself. It's stressful, I think, having out of town company. You're still in your house, so you feel like everything should be normal, but it's all thrown out of whack.
In any case, we had a roaring good time, even without the bar. We spent a good chunk of time at the beach which is slowly becoming my favourite place in Cleveland. I really do think that if I wind up staying here permanently, I'd like to get a house on the lake. Expensive, I'm sure, but worth it. We went to a bunch of good restaurants, tried to watch my Perseids meteor showed - a bit of a failure...Allan claims he saw a really good shooting star, but I think it was a lightening bug, no matter what he says. I think I saw a few, but given the fact that I don't know for certain, you can tell that they weren't too impressive. Sunday was party day. My whole family turned out for it, which went better than I expected. Truth be told, I was nervous all night on Saturday, worrying about what might or might not happen. No one really spoke to each other - Iselin kind of spoke to the air instead of my mom, and the only interaction I saw between my parents was when my dad asked Mom where he should put his garbage - but that also means there weren't any fights. My friends report that my family at the very least said goodbye to one another and that my mom shook people's hands. So it's a step, I suppose. Getting everyone into one location and not having any arguments or hurt feelings, that's a good thing. Plus, when I spoke to both my mom and my dad, they felt individually that it had gone well. Maybe by the time my 30th birthday rolls around, we'll be able to really have fun.
25. A quarter of a century. It seems like such a short span of time, but I feel a bit old too. Today, I'm tired. I'm tired of looking at my to-do list, I'm tired of searching for a job, and I'm tired of the job I have now. I keep scouring the paper and websites and seeing jobs that I'm definitely not qualified for or that I'm too qualified for.
Well slap my ass and call me Sally - just as I put the period on that sentence, my phone rang. A woman from CASE - a great university just down the road - called me to schedule an interview! It's exciting even being called for a position. It's not until next week, but that's fine. It gives me no small measure of joy to think that I might be able to have a job that I actually like soon...or at least, that I can leave this one behind. Plus, CASE is an excellent school. If I could get a job there, it's possible I could keep moving up the ladder and maybe be able to work for their counseling department when I get my masters.
So that's good news. I miss my friends...I truly do. It would be so nice to have all of you - or any of you - living in town. I loved having 3 of my 5 closest friends here for the weekend. Wouldn't it be wonderful not to have friends who need to sleep on my uncomfortable pull-out sofa bed, who could - at the end of a fun night - say, "Alright, I'm heading home"? I would appreciate that. That's yet another reason to be psyched for this interview...the idea of a new job gives me hope that I might be able to befriend some of my co-workers. God, that would be grand.
Birthdays are good things, I think. Some of my families don't celebrate every one of their child's birthdays, and I think that's a shame. Everyone deserves a day when the people who love them say, "We think you're wonderful. We are so happy that you were created and born, that you've made it this far, and that we've gotten to be a part of it. We love having you around." Sure, the presents are nice - but screw the presents, they're not the important part. I could be perfectly happy without getting any presents...I just like having the people I care about in one place. Brandon stopped by and gave me a pot of moon lillies and speariment...and really, it just made me break out in smiles. I think it's nice, that for both of our birthdays we gave each other something living, something that we could care for and appreciate. Tonight, when it cools off a bit, I'll go plant them alongside the morning glories he gave me - which are thriving.
I'm happy it was my birthday. I'm happy so many people came or called or left me a message wishing me well. It makes the little days - like today, that are quiet and soothing, even more precious.