this.is.the.deal.

As mentioned before, i couldn't get my act together to plan a party, and decided to celebrate my twenty-tenth with dinner out. After some back and forth today, it seemed to make the most sense to skip the dinner part, and just do drinks. It looks like the tentative plan is to meet at the beehive this monday the 16th around 9-9:30ish, have some drinks, and eat bar food (delicious grilled cheese sandwiches and french fries with fried sage are on my mind). I'd love to have as many people stop by as i can rile up, so plan to play hookey on tuesday (or not), and grab a drink with us on monday.

so.strange.

I woke up this morning and noticed a little light bulb on the night table. I was momentarily confused as i tried to remember if it was there the night before, and decided that it must have been, and i must not have noticed it. Then i looked in the lamp, and the bulb was missing. Since i used that very lamp last night, i must have gotten up and removed the bulb in my sleep. It must have been tricky too since the shade is long and thin, so takes some maneuvering to figure out. I have no memory of it.

big.news.

I got in! The big envelope was shoved in our little mailbox yesterday evening when i stopped by. I couldn't stop smiling all the way up the stairs, because everyone knows what a big envelope means. I waited until i opened it and read the congratulations part until i let myself believe it. Even though i was 98% confident that i'd get in after that fantastic interview, i didn't want to get too full of myself in case they rejected me. It's better to tell people you were accepted to a highly competitive program than rejected from a place you knew you'd get in to. I didn't tell anyone last night (partly because it was pretty late by that point) and i really liked having it to myself for a bit. This morning i showed a. the letter, and called my mom and sister (my dad was out golfing). I used the b.'s for their central air and spent the day at their house to escape the 95 degree heat. The girls and i took a walk to the liquor store mid-day for some mike's, but that was the extent of my outside activity. While eating dinner, i noticed a car pulling up the street, and then coming back and angling in the driveway. I thought they were turning around, but when i heard doors opening, i got up to see my parents arriving with a bottle of champagne and a huge bunch of peonies. Even though they'd come straight from a graduation party, we forced some food on them and then all toasted with the champagne. It was so nice of them to drive all the way into boston just to celebrate with me, especially with gas prices as they are. Thank you! Now i'm able to breathe a little easier knowing that every thing's set for the next two years; i have a place to live, a school to go to, and loans to accept- it couldn't be more fantastic.

sometimes.i.don't.get.it.

Sometimes i write a post and i think, "boy, this post was made for comments. It'll get a ton, maybe even the most ever!" Other times it's the opposite "i'm just writing about something that happened today. It's pretty trivial and no one may be interested, but i like it." A lot of the time i'm right, but a significant portion turns out to be the complete opposite. Like a recent post for example. The part about my mom's graduation may not have warranted any remarks, but that photo? Seriously? I thought for sure there would be some smarty-pants comments on that one. No dice. I guess it just goes to show me that you readers are an unpredictable bunch. I'll have to keep mixing it up and see what pans out.

brights.

The other day on my way to work, three cars in a row flashed their brights at me. I wasn't speeding, but i double checked, and waved to each car. Once i passed the cop, i paid it forward, and flashed a few cars coming the other direction. The strong feeling of camaraderie was satisfying, and made me think about how situations impact group dynamics. Not that we really had any dynamics- the split second in passing barely allowed us to see each other let alone speak. Yet we were all looking out for each other, even if it was just to stand up to the speed trap at the side of the road. I wonder if we would have liked each other, or if we would ignore each other given half a chance. Like in high school when all the students band together against the unfair teacher, and for a moment it doesn't matter who's cool and who isn't. I'm sure there have been tons of papers written on this topic, and maybe one day i'll read them. For now, i'll take comfort in the fact that most drivers are looking out for me. Thank goodness.

talk.about.a.morale.booster...

The 6 year old i hang out with on tuesday and friday made me this picture yesterday. I've only known them for about six months, but she's a pretty smart kid. Reads and writes very well for her age- she sounded all of this out by herself.

happy.birthday.l.!

Today's l.'s birthday. She's eight. I can remember the day she was born, and it's crazy to think about how long ago that was. I visited her at the hospital a few hours after she was born. I got there before m. (and the people who were watching her) and held l. for quite some time. I can even remember the shirt i was wearing.
Today was also the last day of school, and anticipating that it might be hard for them (last time they'll see most of their friends for a few years), a. took the day off. Since i'm a slacker and don't work on wednesdays, i spent most of it with them. First was prize day (awards at school for highest gpa, public speaking, etc), then we all went and got manicures. Julie's flying out of boston tomorrow (so won't be here for my birthday), and she drove in with some cupcakes and kimball's ice cream. What a nice sister! We went to a couple of stores, and then met back up with the clan and did some art projects. Then was dinner at a nearby shabu-shabu restaurant (l.'s choice). Julie was forced to tag along since we didn't have time to go home first. I think she was really upset about it. Despite getting car sick on the way home, i think l. had a great day. I sure did!

like.dislike.

I like...
...peonies. I love them. This is the time of year they're in bloom, and i lucked out with three from my mom's garden. Not that i'm one of those people who has their entire wedding planned out years in advance, but i'd seriously aim to have it in june just so i could have peonies. My favorite is the light pink large flower. Like this one on the right, but lighter. My mom gave me white ones called easter bonnet peonies (i think) and they're fantastic too! I couldn't find a web image, so i'll try to take a real picture to post at some point.

I dislike...
...wide screen computer monitors. They horizontally stretch photos and make everyone look chubby.

my.left.eye's.better.

Thanks to recent events (evil's focus on facial imperfections, evil twin #1's comment on my freckles (which come out in the sun), and jen's 10x magnified and lit mirror), i've been paying more attention to my face. It's true that my freckles have come out early this year, but i've never had an issue with them. In fact, i like them (and for the record- when et#1 mentioned them, she said she liked them too). For the most part, nothing new has come from this slight increase in face time. The only thing i've noticed (and this also has to do with spending some time uploading pictures) is that my eyes look different when i smile. The right one's okay, but the left one's great. It crinkles at the bottom corner a little more, and makes my whole eye look twinkly. I also like the lid and eyebrow line better. I don't tend to like left either (though i do think it's cool to be left handed (which i'm not)). Just like i don't like odd numbers. No reasoning behind it- i just think it's bad. However, whenever i see my left eye, it's in a photo or mirror, so it's on the right to me. It was a little tricky to find pictures to share here, but i managed to come up with a few that illustrate my point. Don't you agree??

ha.ha.ha.ha.ha.ha.ha.ha.ha.

As mentioned before, my mom recently completed her masters in education. The graduation itself was two weeks ago, but since julie was visiting from california, my mom invited some close family out for dinner tonight (though i wasn't asked until last night. Do you think they were hoping i'd be busy?). My dad came up with the idea of inviting a bunch of other people, and making it into a surprise graduation party. He planned everything down to the lie my uncle could tell her (if needed), and everything worked out seamlessly. Many guests (some who i should have known, but didn't remember) congratulated me on doing such a great job putting the party together. In reality, all i did was pick up a few things at costco, and meet the guests in a nearby parking lot. The best part about it was this poster my dad put together. I don't think there's ever been a funnier picture of my mom in all her twenty-nine years.