Thursday, Mar. 24, 2005 - 2:46 p.m.
I am sitting at my current temp job, doing nothing.
I'm temping at the Salvation Army. It's interesting and a little weird at the same time. They actually play up the whole "army" thing. People who're higher employees here are called Major so-and-so and stuff. But everyone's been really friendly, and I have to credit them that at least if they're not going to have anything for me to do I can use the internet.
I'm not completely certain, but I think that spring officially began last weekend sometime. And to celebrate not only spring, but my return from TN and beautiful TN mid 60s weather, it snowed yesterday here in New York. Snow. Lots, the kind the sticks to everything and covers your car. It's the end of March, I just want winter to end.
My trip to TN was a good thing. Time to toss Jairo to the wolves and make him deal with the differing family cultures.
I only say that because of something that happened just before our trip. He sat down and asked me to make a point of saying hi to his mom and her boyfriend whenver I see them, explaining that it's just a thing with them where they judge your upbringing on it (or something - I'm actually quite confused).
See, I thought I was doing this. But I cannot carry on a conversation with his mom....and it's more than the language barrier, although that's a large part of it. And I've never felt so awkward about trying to figure out how to be with someone.
I mean,ok, I've not tried to hold many conversations with her, but she hasn't tried to talk to me either. I'm used to my parents and how they will try to pull someone new into a conversation. It also doesn't help that he never really talks to his mom much, so I'm inadvertantly drawing off of their relationship.
So, now I'm even more self-conscious going to his house for fear I'm going to give the wrong impression by being shy or whatever.
So, I'd like to think that his experience with my family was better, but honestly, how would I know....all I know is that for him it's less constant.
For a lot of the trip I was taken off guard by how shy he actually became. I guess I'd forgotten that he was like that. But he barely spoke (always, even when not true, citing that we were talking about things or people he didn't know so he wasn't going to butt in), until the last day or so. I was happy when he finally did though because it seemed like he'd gotten more comfortable.
But I think he probably made a decent impression. And there's something incredibly special about being able to share the people you love with each other.
We got in Friday evening and got some Sonic (Jairo had never had it) and hung out and watched some cartoons. Denver visited.
Saturday was all about going to my mom's. My mother took us outside and showed me and Jairo her chickens and her garden. We played with my dog. He's not aging well, and it isn't helped by the fact that my mother is letting him get fat and blaming it on his inability to run.
My brother and his wife, my sister and her husband, my mom and her husband were all there. As well as my mom's stepsons and a visit from their grandmother. Their grandmother tries my patience (almost as much as they do). She tries to act like she's my grandmother and as much as it may sound mean to say, I could care less about her. I barely know her and wish she would stop trying so damn hard to get in my business. The boys just frustrate me because they have a lot of annoying traits.
I showed Jairo my old room and my stuff that I wish I could bring back with me.
The day lasted a bit too long, like most trips to my mom's do. And I still felt guilty when we left.
Sunday me and Jairo headed to Murfreesboro to get me a new cell phone (because of a stupid clause that made me have to change it over in the same state my phone number belongs to) while Heather started cooking.
(I now have a camera phone. Unfortunately, I didn't really think about it much and lost the opportunity to take photos of my family to keep on my phone, with me at all times and easily accessible to share with people)
We returned in time to be there when my dad and his wife and my brother and his wife came over.
Heather's food was really good, but the conversation was a little less fluid than it had been the night before. My grandparents had not come because my grandmother was in great amounts of pain so we decided to take dessert to them at my dad's house.
Like my sister said, my dad's house (much like my grandparent's house before) has a quality to it that makes one sleepy. So, she fell asleep.
I didn't get to talking to my grandmother, really talking, until my dad had basically kind of told me we should be leaving soon because we didn't want to keep anyone up too late (because they were driving back to MI early the next morning to get my grandma to the doctor). And I didn't really have a good conversation with my dad this trip either. The whole night felt off. Like going through the motions.
A nice aside though, it seems to have become cool again hanging out with my brother and his wife....and they're getting along with my sister and her husband, and that makes things so nice and me very happy.
So, we (Denver included - he'd come later) headed back to Heather's and Tillman came by.
He only hung out for a few hours, but it was nice to see him. and a little odd.
Monday I went to the massage intern clinic on the MTSU campus and got me and my boyfriend cheap massages. (If you live in that area, you should really check into it).
Jairo'd never had a massage and he's got this male thing about not having strangers touch him, so I wanted him to see what I meant when I said that professional massages were really great. And then we get there and the masseuse is a guy, so I was worried he'd be all uncomfortable. But he agreed that it had helped his tension a whole lot and would probably do it again.
Then I went and got my haircut. I always get a haircut when I'm home because it's the only time I get it just right.
Mom and Denver met us at the hair place. And then we headed to my brother's apartment. We played a little Trivial Pursuit for the 90s while we waited for Heather, and I called my friend John because he'd been furiously writing me emails insisting we get together.
So we all headed to a mexican joint and had dinner. My mom was thrilled to get to see Jess and John again. It was a nice dinner, but it cut into plans I'd had to see another friend. So after that I called Jeremy and we decided to meet up in the morning.
The rest of the night was just me and Heather and Jairo and Denver. And then sleep (which I lacked during the trip - and you usually do during any good trip).
Monday, driving to Murfreesboro, I realized that I missed that area and its familiarity and proximity to my family. But, I also realized that my life is no longer there and if I returned it wouldn't be the same. And that's when you realize that your home is somewhere else.
I took Jairo to Jeremy and Elke's and we met the baby, Elena. She's adorable, but she wasn't feeling well while we were there and cried a lot. Even her cry is cute, a little, plaintive, hiccoughing sound. So we hung out for about 2 hours and headed out.
Then we hung out with my sister. I went through some clothes she was getting rid of, had some stuff cabbage (which now I want more of), and figured out how to transport a plant she gave me.
Leaving always sucks.
And then a few hours later after a bumpy plane ride, I returned to life here.
