!!!!!!!!!!SUPER HAPPY AWESOME-TASTIC FUN TIMES!!!!!!!!!!

FRIDAY

We went to a football game with some friends and despite it being cold as fuck we had a great time. I think it was more the company than anything... So if you're reading this Shelley - we should hang out again. Shadow and I had a blast.

SATURDAY

Two words: Six Flags. It was freakin' GREAT. The weather was perfect once we got there and started walking around. I'd worried a little about Shadow riding rides, but he ended up LOVING it. He'd scream on just about every ride we got on about how great and awesome and cool it was, and he'd throw up the little "rock" hands, and then scream some more (half the time it was crap I couldn't understand 😂). The only rides he didn't seem to like was "Monster Plantation" and the sky bucket thing, but that's ok (I wasn't all that fond of the sky bucket thing myself, haha). I guess I'm scared of heights... well - more like falling from them. But anywayz...

I rode some rides and really enjoyed them. I finally opened my eyes on a roller coaster for the first time... (I've only ever been to Six Flags one other time in my life and I didn't enjoy that trip at all...) But this time I actually had a lot of fun. Me and Nick rode some things together... he ended up laughing at me a lot. The first coaster we rode I ducked and apparently made a weird face, so... I didn't really think I was going to hear the end of that (and I probably haven't). We ended up on a lot of the smaller rides that Shadow could get on and that was actually more my speed. I really liked those (and wasn't too scared to open my eyes). Not to mention we could all three get on most of those together. The only thing I got on that Shadow couldn't was some thing in Gotham City that swings you around... I liked that thing a LOT. At one point I felt like I was just puking giggles because I was having so much fun.

The only thing that wasn't so great was the driving... the heater in my car isn't working so the ride there was very cold... and we had to ride with our windows cracked a bit because the window kept fogging up. And on the way home I was so tired that I was just plain stoopid. I scared Nick pretty bad a few times... I stopped in the middle of an intersection at a red light and just sat there until he pointed it out, then backed up; and also when we got home I thought I saw someone on the roof and freaked for a moment. (There's more, but I think you've heard enough. I really think I'd gone past tired into something else altogether.)

Anyway, all in all, it was a great day. I was with my two favorite guys and also some friends, which made for some awesome company. Oh, and Shadow won a bunch of stuffed animals... he even won a dinosaur for me! He's such a sweetie. But yeah, good times were had.

SUNDAY

We saw "The Nightmare Before Christmas" in 3D (in a fancy theater in Birmingham that has ice cream and coffee). I love that movie and it was awesome. The 3D effects were really well-done and the glasses weren't the cheap-ass cardboard kind, either. It was pretty cool.

TODAY WE MET THE FUCKING YEAH YEAH YEAHS!!!!!

Today has freakin' ROCKED!!!!! Me and Nick went to ATL today to see a Yeah Yeah Yeah's free acoustic show and it was GREAT! I ended up watching the performance from behind the band which was fine with me because they were so close I could almost touch them. 😍

They were doing this thing where if you dressed up like the band you would have a chance to have your picture made with them. So as I expected there were a LOT of goofy looking girls there. I ended up wearing my default everyday black shoes, some dark blue jeans, and my gray sweater (which is totally not what I'd planned to wear - I changed my mind at the last minute). Anyone happen to notice what Karen-O is wearing in that first pic? The same damn thing! I've told you people - I know things. Shit comes to me. So... I got to get my picture made with her!

(Yes, I'm in that one... my arms were just too short to get us both, LOL. You can see my glasses in the bottom right corner, though). And yes I was all up ons - we were close. I forgot to smell her, though. I've always wondered what she smells like...)

Nick took this one for me... and yes he got one too.

THEN... we had our pictures made with Brian Chase - the drummer (who rocks my socks, btw.) He is AWESOME!!!

He was SOOOOO nice. He said to me, "Hey, I have a band-aid, too."

And then he shows me his.  Yep, got a photo of Brian Chase's band-aid.

(I don't know if that was blood or just a really cool band-aid... he had to leave really fast so I didn't get to ask). But before he left we got his autograph on the back of this face thing that Nick got:

Afterwards, they had cake... so we had some of that and then also we bought their new album, which came with a free remix disc that has remixes done by Peaches, Nick Zinner, and Diplo (which is AWESOME, btw). Today has been AMAZING! 😁😁😁

On a lighter note than this past week's postings...

Yeah, I've had a few bad days this week. But I haven't forgotten all the good that's happened, too. For example:  Not this past Friday, but the one before it I went to Munford's Homecoming football game. I haven't been to even one game since I graduated in 2001 and boy was I overwhelmed when I got there. I started doing this thing where I laugh / cry / gasp for air... it was quite unattractive I'm sure. (To Jill, I'm kind of glad you were late... you might've never wanted to hang out with me again had you been there for that.  😂😂😂)

It was just so weird. When I got there, there were no places to sit except for one right near the band. Well, that suited me fine... for those who don't know I marched percussion in high school. Yes, I was a band nerd... always will be, too. Oh, the memories of being back in those stands, playing the hell out of my instrument, marching on the field. I miss it. Yes, I'm such a dork that on my way to the game (I had a short walk) I could hear the band playing and I found myself falling in step, taking the same path that we took as a band to get into the game. Sitting in the stands, even, I found myself banging my legs to the songs I knew. It was so awesome to just be there... it brought back so much. But then you look around and you see so many unfamiliar faces... like you weren't really back home or something. Then you realize how long it's been. You see teachers and other faces you know, but they're obviously aged. It just made me a little crazy for a minute. Like I said, overwhelmed.

Well, don't get me wrong. I love feeling. And I had a blast - especially once Jill and Misty got there. They were fun. And it was super-nice to be out with some girls just hanging out. I don't do that nearly enough. (HINT HINT)

Anyway, more good stuffs:  I went to Target yesterday and I was shopping on the clearance rack ('cause that's about the only time you can get me to shop) and found a shirt for $5.00 that I really liked so I got it. Then I found a sweater on the clearance rack that I wanted, but I found out it was $15.00. I was a little bummed out. I was thinking about that one... I didn't really want to spend that much money on a sweater. But then I resigned myself to getting it. I got to the register and just mentioned that I was bummed when I found out the sweater wasn't on clearance and the lady asked me the price I initially thought it was. I told her $4.98 because that's what everything else on the rack was going for. So she just gave it to me for that. THAT freakin' made my day. It was nice.

Also, this past week Jack (my boss) gave me some pens. One was really fancy and pretty, another was not so much (but kind of sparkly), and then two of them had highlighter's on one end. I was pretty happy over that, too.

This Friday we hung out with Santos and that was fun. He always make me laugh. Also, Nick's been a sweetheart, (or maybe it's all in my head, who knows?), but I've rather enjoyed more than usual all the time I've spent with him lately.

And recently I've bought myself a few girly things (like the clothes at Target and some make-uppy things)... something I've gotten out of the habit of doing over the past few years. I've gotta say, I've sort of made myself feel a little special by doing that. So FYI (ladies, especially): When you're busy taking care of everyone else try not to forget yourself. It's sort of refreshing.

And, well... that's all the good stuffs I can think of right now. So...

THE END.

I hate my baby momma.

I can think of two great guys right off the top of my head who have every right to say that, but they don't. Why? Because they are great, DECENT guys. Guys that don't deserve to be walked on. Guys who deserve to see their children. Guys who would do anything to take care of and be there for the ones they love. But they are not even given the option because of stupid baby's mommas.

Guy #1's Story: His girlfriend of (at least) two years left him. Then she wanted to come back and he took her back. Then she was pregnant. They were both excited and happy, they got married, and finally the baby was born. Guy #1 joined the military in order to support and provide a better life for his family and what did his wife do? Took the baby (while he was in boot camp and didn't know what was going on), went to another state, gave the baby away (luckily to a family member of the guy), and disappeared. Now Guy #1 is in the military, doesn't get to see his child, and is having to deal with the stress of that plus a divorce. 

Guy #2's Story: He and his girlfriend both wanted a baby and they made one. They bought a house together and things were good. He SO wanted to be there for her... go to doctor appointments, hear the baby's heart beat, really be there for it all. Long story short, she moved out, started avoiding him, and despite his many efforts he doesn't get to see his child until it's almost six months old... and then only every other weekend by an order of the court.

WHAT GIVES? When I was pregnant I would've given anything to have my child's father there with me - trying his best to take care of us and wanting to be a family. These girls obviously didn't know what they had. Even if you don't want a relationship with a person you don't have to completely screw them over. WTF.

All I can say is that these two girls gave up a lot - whether by making bad choices or just not knowing what the hell they wanted before it was too late to turn back. For example, the wife of Guy #1 could be living it up in Hawaii this very moment with her husband and her daughter by her side. The girlfriend of Guy #2 could be living on her own, in her own house, with him. Not with her parents (which I know from experience doesn't work for long. Mama's tend to bump heads over babies and grand-babies).

I hope both of these stupid females are happy with the situations they've created for themselves - and more importantly - their children. Not only could these kids have everything they need, but they could have their fathers in their lives - fathers that WANT to be there, which not all children are lucky enough to have. If you don't believe me I know a kid you could ask.

The games people play.

Take me, for instance. I have this game I play every time I go to a drive-through lane at a bank. I try to guess which lane will have a pen left in the thing that gets sucked through the tubes... and if I'm right I WIN THE PEN.

Yes, I take it. EVERY TIME.

So far my score (in pens) is 12. 😂

Blondie

Well... more sad news. I can't believe I'm doing this twice in one day. *sigh* So I was cleaning the gerbils' cage today and noticed that Blondie was missing. We freaked out thinking that she'd escaped and looked for her for a few minutes. Well, I had to finish cleaning the cage so I got back to it thinking I'd see her scurrying about in the room before long. *sigh* Had she gotten out that would've been a better alternative than what happened next. I found her buried in the cage - not moving. I'm not sure how long she'd been that way, but it had to be a day or two, at least.

We're not sure what happened to her... we were thinking she might have been preggers again so she may have had complications with that or something. Her bottom half was kind of red so maybe that's what it was. I didn't see any babies, though. Honestly I'm just pretty baffled. I hadn't paid attention to the fact that I haven't seen her out playing lately because they tend to rest and not come out so much before they give birth. I figured if I hadn't seen her that's what was going on. Also, she looked a lot like Toad so I may have just thought I'd seen her out but really didn't.

Well, the saddest part is that Shadow was right there when I found her and those gerbils are like his babies. He cried and I felt terrible. I'd been thinking I was going to give Blondie's first litter away, but I told Shadow we'd keep them all since they were a part of her. Speaking of - I also told him we'd find a way to keep her. *sigh* I wonder if the crematorium offers a two-for-one deal. (Sadly, that was not a joke).

Octavious the Midnight Cowboy

I have sad news. Octavious the Midnight Cowboy passed away last night. He'd been sick for a week or so and we tried our best to get him well. I didn't realize it until lots of reading over the last few days, but hedgehogs are prone to SO many illnesses. At first we thought he may have had a bacterial infection so we washed him. That didn't work. Then we thought maybe he was having a food allergy and switched his food, but that did no good, either. Over the weekend we gave him Pedialyte (recommendation from a vet), but his condition got much worse, very fast - despite our best efforts. I found a vet over the weekend who'd seen hedgehogs before and was planning to take him for a visit today, but he didn't make it. I'm really sad and it's in the back of my mind that somehow I should've done more for him. Hedgies can get sick in so many ways... from mild things like allergies and sinus infections to tumors, cancer, and the wobbly disease.

*sigh* I hate to say it, but it's almost a relief that he's gone. He looked SO miserable and pitiful and I really don't think a vet could've helped him by the time I found one that could see him. I hate to see an animal suffer. For anyone who's curious we're keeping him... he's off to be cremated today and after that he'll have his very own spot above our fireplace. I don't know what more to say other than that he will be missed. Rest in peace, Tavi. You were a sweet fella.