Lately

Monday I went to Uptown Pub to visit with Tiffani. Her fiance Ryan works there. It was nice seeing them interact casually even though he was at work. They can still talk in bytes, touch each other's hands on his way to deliver a drink. A positive example of erasing the borders between work and life, in a way. They're getting married two weeks before Bri and me, and they won't quite be back from their honeymoon to S. Africa/Ireland in time to take part in the Peters-Robinson hitching. Sad. But life, in general, for them appears to be good.

I'm at work and supposed to be — what's the word? — ah, yes ... working. Very distracted. I'm really wanting to leave and do a long-ish run somewhere. Not sure why.

I saw a sweet gmail from Ty that he sent the other day, and I haven't responded yet (hiiiii Tyyyyy). I could just as easily be responding to it now. But it's one of those you have to absorb, let it moisturize your cracked parts, massage. Only then can you take up the craft of response.

Brian is being my hero lately. And man, have I needed a hero. Hard for me to admit, but geez, a wedding can threaten to take out the sanity of even the most "I don't care if I have a wedding or not" women in the world. Not just because of the pratical stress — money, planning, inviting, etc. But whatever issues you attempt to keep buried, at bay, managed in life ... a wedding will beat you at that little game. So just be prepared to deal.

Holly brought me this week's TV guide thing from inside the paper, with a picture of Christopher Meloni on the front. I cut it out and stuck it on my cubicle wall, so now he's staring at me with his arms crossed, all Law & Order-like.

Sunday the family celebrated mom and dad's birthdays (72 on 4/21 and 75 on 4/26, respectively). Went to church with them and then to Abuelo's afterwards. It was a good time. Next big event for them will be their 50th anniversary next January. We (their offspring) originally were planning to send them to New York so mom could visit her twin sister, who moved up there a few years ago and whom mom misses terribly. But mom doesn't fly well and dad would have to miss too much work for a road trip that far. So now we're thinking a Hill Country road trip for them. Which suits them much better anyways.

Tomorrow night is going to be very haaaaaaaaay. DMN publication Quick is hosting this event at Palladium Ballroom called Quick's Big Thing, with performances from locals like Polyphonic Spree and PPT, and with panelists discussing local music stuff. Beforehand there's a VIP reception with food, which is why I'm going ::urp:: Afterward, me and some of my paper girls (and a paper boy or two) are going to Minc, following the DJs who used to do the old school hip-hop night at Slip Inn before Slip Inn decided they didn't like the "element" it was bringing in. I.e. It was all white people at first then OMG black people started coming. Imagine that. How dare black people think they can go to a dive to catch a little HIP-HOP music. Ridiculous. That's ok, because the loudest way to protest is with the $$$, and Slip Inn won't be getting anymore of our DMN dollas.

Hither and yon

Saw most of a DVD tonight w/ my sister called
Across the Universe. A musical set in the '60s to Beatles songs. So over the top, so musical, so angsty and dramatic. It's overwrought and they know it and rock it. Which I love. A little slow in parts, but other parts are fah-ree-ken TRIP-ay!!@#@ I was seriously like "WTF!" but in a good way. They got my favorite Beatles song in there, "Strawberry Fields," so that's all I cared about. Visuals were brash and yummy, too.

A gauge if you'll like it or not: You'll probably like Universe if you like Moulin Rouge ("Spectacular SpecTACular!!"). If you don't like Moulin Rouge ... stay far far away. Moulin Rouge is better, though.

You know ... my sister and my niece Janiece talked around the kitchen table tonight — me with a glass of boxed wine, them cracking me and each other up. It was a little on the magical side for me, since that's not a usual Friday night for us.

BLUH .... That full, week-old basket of clothes over there isn't going to fold its contents on its own. Then again, apparently I'm not going to, either.

I picked up extra-extra freelance at work, on top of the freelance I already do. It's just compilation kind of stuff for the primaries, but ugh, so time consuming. I refuse to do any of it this weekend, so next week's going to be busy.

Brian and I have one of our many here-and-there pre-marriage counseling sessions tomorrow afternoon. I keep meaning to take along an actual list of stuff that could use discussion. We usually just wing it, then it's over, then I'm lying in bed in the dark every night afterward like, "Gah! I forgot to bring up that!" Rull grrr.

My ::baby:: niece Keena turns 18 on Monday!! I can't believe it. The family will celebrate Sunday evening at mom and dad's by pigging out on tacos that mom and Brian make and smearing our faces with mom's chocolate birthday cake icing. That's what I'm talking about. GET THIS. Keena's turning the magic number that makes her all grown AND my other niece, Janiece, is the age of my favorite number .... ::drum roll please:: 23. Ka-pow.

Ugggghhhh. I'll be wallowing in self-hate tomorrow morning. I suppose them's the ugly, insomniac breaks.