This weekend has been full. I got to talk with
Quizro online for the first time, and it was really cool to talk to him. We talked about writing and
seeking publication, relationships. I decided at that point that I was going to make him a mix tape.
I've had this awful cough for almost a week, but no congestion or other typical cold side effects, which is unusual for me. Friday after work I basically knocked myself out with NyQuil while Ken and Bryan went off to Camilla Grille for a late dinner.
For a while now, I had a small noder dinner planned for Saturday night with local noders, which I was excited about. I like having people over for dinner, even though I have no suitable dining table. When I got up Saturday morning to run some errands in the Quarter, I discovered that my car had been broken into during the night. A small hole had been punched just above the door lock, but since my windows are tinted, the rest of the window was intact; you wouldn't even notice it unless you were looking right at it. I checked inside, and sure enough, my stereo was gone, glove box open, ashtray pulled out. I checked the hatch (which was unlocked if the dumbasses had bothered to check it first) and the electric air pump I had was gone too. I thought to myself that I was thankful I took out my roller blades weeks before. If I had made more of a habit to take the faceplate off the stereo when I got home after work every day, this likely could have been avoided. I've lived in shitty neighborhoods the whole time I've lived here, gone through 3 cars, and this was my first break in, which isn't that bad, considering the odds:
• The stereo didn't cost me anything; it was pulled from a totaled car from the lot at my old job.
• The pump came with the car, and I never used it.
• I found a salvage glass for $40 that day and Bryan was able to install it the next day.
• My registration and insurance wasn't taken.
• My car needed a vacuuming desperately anyway.
• I got a lovely sweet package from panamaus in the mail the day it happened, which made me smile and took my mind off it.
• Ted called, which always cheers me up
• Noders responded to one line of text on my homenode with their sympathies.
• We had the dinner that night and had a very nice time hanging out, making fun of SNL.
On Sunday Bryan's folks were coming to get him and all his stuff, so he was taping up boxes and stacking them by the door earlier that morning. Ken showed up to help move boxes and pick up his rice cooker. Over the last few months, so much stuff has been moved in and out of my apartment, I still don't feel like I'm settled. The parents came, gave me a card and a box of candy as a thank you, packed up all Bryan's stuff in their truck and promptly left. Inside the card, his mother had written, "You have a very good heart and thank you for helping Bryan." They had also given me some money, which came in very handy, as I'd drained my savings account to get the glass (which shows you how low that account is, usually), and had no money until 1/31. Once they were gone and I had the place to myself, I felt another bundle of stress leave my body. I will miss Bryan, of course, and I'm sure I will be seeing him again, but it is also nice to have the place to myself again, something I haven't had, really, since this fall and winter began. I played some music and then Ted called. We talked for an hour or so and then I went to church.
Some interesting points about this service. Mike asked us what things made us happy, and how do these things reflect how we looked at the world. My two that I came up with were 1) when I can counter bad things that happen in the moment with good things that happen all the time (i.e. count my blessings, in a way) and 2) when I am part of some collaborative effort with other people to attain a goal (i.e. the dinner I hosted, gatherings, any social activity) and things work out. Then he asked us what things made us angry, and how they reflect our world view. In the case of almost everyone who voiced theirs, the things that made them angry were almost always what people did to them, whereas things that made us happy were more like activities or things not always centered around a person. I offered the idea that people often anger us the most because with anger comes great passion. Humans being so passionate about so many things, we are most likely to stir these sorts of feelings. It was definitely an interesting exercise.
I came back home from church a little nervy, since this would the first night alone in the apartment. As usual, I turned on alternate lights in every room and turned the radio on low. I got online and started talking to my friend Mike, who was at home making 3 bean soup. He invited me over and we hung out and talked while the soup simmered. I watched him walk from stove to kitchen, cleaning each utensil and dish as he used it, moving over things in the fluid, sturdy motion that I've grown accustomed to. It was good to see him and catch up with him. He showed me some new things he'd bought for the house. I had a few beers and tried to get sleepy, but I ended up coughing most of the night when I got home, even with the NyQuil.
So, all in all, a busy and surely interesting weekend that turned out okay in the end, for a change. I am eagerly awaiting this weekend to see Ted and attend the Atlanta gathering.