This past week, John took off to Texas for SXSW, and since I would have to take off work to hang with the Cos- anyway, we decided to go visit the SMWB down south.
It was a good trip and I couldn’t believe, when I woke up at 6 this morning, that I actually had to go to work. It was a idea that was very foreign to me…having to dress in non-casual outfits and go wait for a bus in the dark. I eventually bucked up and here I sit. Coffee in hand and ready to work. In a minute… after I finish this post.
So yeah – we went to Florida. I was pretty excited about the trip. There really is no one I’d rather be with if I have to be without John, than with the SMWB. I envisioned long nights with numerous smoke breaks interspersed with laughter. When we’re together, there’s always laughter.
After the first night, the boy got a tickle in his throat and hardly ever went out to smoke – which was fine because his girlfriend, she’s a world class smoker.
But the long nights were there. There were multiple episodes of “That 70s show” and several hours of basketball. The last night I was there, we watched High Fidelity.
And the laughter. Really, you should hear the amounts of laugther that can be heard when we are together.
Anyway. Even though I was really excited about the trip, I was hesitant on a couple of levels.
One – John pretty much takes care of putting Cosi to bed each night and of everything I could be worried about taking a trip alone with my 10 month old daughter – this was it. This was what I was most afraid of. But all in all, it wasn’t too bad. I was blessed to be around a couple that really didn’t seem to mind hearing cries come from behind a closed door.
Two – I’m not very good at sharing. And I’ve had my friend to myself for quite a few years now. And now he’s got a girlfriend that he practically lives with and what she wants and thinks will probably (and rightfully) be more important to him. You’ve heard before that the only way to get someone over the fear of the water is to throw them in the middle of the lake so that they have to swim back to you… Halfway through the week, the girfriend had a bit of traumatic thing happen to her….or to one of her friends. I won’t go into details, but it seemed to be a pretty big thing for her. She apologized profusely for this event being such a big focus all week long. What I told her is this: I’m kind of glad it happened while I was there. Let me explain a little. When my mom comes to visit, she always says she doesn’t want to do anything big and fancy. She just wants to follow us in our daily activities. She wants to see what we do everyday. And on top of that, she wants to see the good and the bad. I’ve waited so long for Eric to find a girl he feels like he can attach to – can trust, can take care of without feeling weighed down. So what good would it be for me to only see the good things that happen. Seeing how the SMWB and his girlfriend reacted to each other when she was down and depressed – that helped me see how his life in Florida is…just as much as seeing him glue sequins on an drink umbrella as he interacted with 15 or so of his schoolmates.
So all in all, it really was a good trip. I got to eat barbeque, I walked thru at least a quarter mile of junk and I made a diorama.
But I am glad it’s over. It was amazingly comforting sleeping next to my CPH last night.