Tonight I hung out with Ruth. We watched some bad tv together, making fun of the shows.
When I first got there, Claire and her were talking about crepes, and she asked me if Americans had them. I told her yes, but I pronounced the word differently, and then she made fun of me.
We had a good series of giggles, and I laughed so loudly and long that I think I frightened other people away. Ruth has no tolerance for American television, which means she made a lot of faces of horror and disgust. I turned on a crappy sci-fi show and we began making fun of how racist and xenophobic it is. Afterwards, I turned on a show with a hot guy, and things calmed down.
Ruth was doing some research, and she told me that the Eisenhower Library charges seventy-five cents per page to print information for you. We talked about how steep and crazy that was. (It really is.) The library is in Missouri, and Ruth's not really interested in going all the way out there, "Even if it's in Kansas City, which is big," she said.
"Oh, there's Tennesse," she said, looking on Google maps.
"It's not that close to Tennesse," I told her.
Then Ruth went off about the middle of the country having absolutely nothing.
"Have you ever been to North Dakota?" she asked. Then she started planning her trip there.
Two minutes later: "Did you know that there are two Hicksville's in the U.S.? Do you want to go?"
I don't want to go, Ruth.
"Why not? What more do you want in life?"
She is very cross with me for not going.
"It has a mall," she said, trying to get me to come. And then she started talking about how malls are awful.
"It has a vitamin shop," she said, trying, again, to get me to come.
"I saw an advert for IHOP; I don't remember what it is."
"I might have to go to Hicksville. It's probably just as shit as the rest of New York."
Then she started using Google's Streetview to look at the city.
"There's nothing here! I'm going to check out the mall."
Then she found a store that sold shoes for "problem feet." Which led into a fight over how to pronounce "podatrist."
She explained to me that England only has dentists. And then looked up a list of the famous people from North Dakota.
"Sam Anderson's from North Dakota?" I asked.
"Apparently."
North Dakota has some famous people, who I hadn't heard of.
We both knew who Leonard Peltier was, so I guess we weren't completely out of our league.
"We can go to a rodeo and a powwow. It's part of their culture."
Okay, okay.
"I think they are faking this 14 days of fun. It won't load!"
Then she started researching weird deaths. In between, the North Dakota page loaded. "Look, they have peacocks and snow! People jog there!"
"People jog here," I say.
"That's because you've never been there," she said.
They also have the world's largest catfish, which she told me all about.
"North Dakota has a special place in my heart," she said.
She got excited for their manufacturing plants and their tax rise. "They must be crazy," she said, about the latter. "And they extended it for 2016, because they're crazy."
I told her I was tired, and she gave me the chance to go to bed.
Showing posts with label Ruth. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Ruth. Show all posts
Thursday, December 22, 2011
Sunday, April 17, 2011
A Friday Night for Myself and Others
One of the reasons I feel weird about being the center of attention for partying is that I'm apparently meant to make decisions for our own fun. I don't like making the decisions and in any case, most of them get ignored if they don't make people happy.
Anyway, so we were at our favorite restaurant, and we were thinking of moving on to somewhere else. But I'm not much of a partier, so I didn't know where to go. Claire was being particularly annoying about it. Finally, Jenny stepped in and saved the day and was nice enough to suggest a particular place.
When we got there, Ruth and I used the bathroom, and we both got a drink from the bar. We were perfectly happy to just talk to each other. Ruth was leaving for a while, and I know that I'm going to miss her dearly. It was our last night together.
Two men approached our group. Neither of them were particularly attractive. The first guy, who has a beard, was a jerk. When I talked to him about my current employment situation, he was totally judgemental and unkind. And then he also berated a recent decision I had made. Part of wished I could explain my decision, but how to even begin? All of my decisions reach back into my personal history; even deciding where the genesis of a decision came from is hard to decide. I could have explained about all the reasons, but it would be a long story, and he had already demonstrated a lack of care for my personal feelings. No thanks. No way was I going home with this guy.
His friend seemed sweet enough, though a bit naive. I liked him alright. If he didn't have such a crap friend, I might have been willing to give him more of a chance.
They were both in finance, which later on made Ruth just cringe and complain. "Ack! Finance. So boring." I had to concur. What could girls like Ruth and I have in common with someone like that?
Jenny and Claire were both really liking these guys for reasons I never quite figured out. The guys bought us cheap beer, which was totally crap.
As I was standing there, finishing the beer up, so man at the bar told me I could have a drink that had been left there next to him. He felt the need to tell me no one had taken it and that it wasn't drugged, which made me disinterested.
Eventually, Ruth and decided to go home, and off we went, leaving Claire and Jenny. We walked down the street, Ruth leading the way, as I wasn't totally sure I knew where we were going. Ruth wanted to get some McDonald's before we went back home, and I reluctantly agreed. The only time I seem to eat McDonald's is when I am with Ruth, who seems to prefer it as "drunk food."
This time, ordering wasn't nearly as painful. Ruth got herself some burger and fries and a massive drink, and we trooped back home. We went to sit in the lounge. Ruth didn't want to wake Hayley, her roommate, up, and we ate out there.
There was a Norwegian girl sitting there when we came in, which surprised me because we usually are left alone there that late on Friday nights. She talked to us about how much she hated old women, which actually sort of bothered me. There was nothing about this young woman that I found all that impressive, and why she felt the need to hate on old women and things about them I don't generally find that terrible, really confuses me. Ruth and I exchanged some of our patented looks.
Eventually, we went our separate ways to go to bed. It was around three in the morning before I finally went to bed.
I got about around nine fifteen the next morning, and I was surprisingly okay. In fact, I felt almost great. The only thing that wasn't so good was that I was possibly still drunk. When I first woke up, I still had that swimming feeling that comes with being drunk.
I had breakfast with Hayley and Ruth. I couldn't seem to stomach my omelet, so I gave up on it. Ruth informed me of what had happened to Claire and Jenny the rest of the night. Apparently, Claire and Jenny went to another bar, and Jane tried to buy pot from someone. Claire would not allow this to happen and dragged Jenny home. Apparently Jenny refused to talk to Claire the rest of the way home. They got home sometime between five and six.
(Even later on, Jane would claim that she didn't remember any of this, though Claire certainly did. She also was so drunk that she didn't get up all Saturday.)
I had to work Saturday. I usually don't, but as I was walking to work, I was struck by how nice of a day it was shaping up to be. I walked down the street, admiring the sunshine and the warmth and the air, which felt strangely clear and fresh and almost as if it had never been used before. It was relatively quiet, but there were people around, already out enjoying the day like I was.
I ended up at work way earlier than necessary. It took me a while to figure out where I needed to go, but once I did, seeing my coworker wasn't around, I sat down and waited for him. As I sat there, being awkward, two other people at the table next to me were setting up. A few even talked to me, saying nice things.
One of the nice people was named Craig. He came over to talk to me. He said he knew my coworker, that he had seen him the night before. "He had an empty bottle of wine."
This particular coworker doesn't strike me as the kind to drink wine, but it sort of put an interesting image in my mind. Sounded like he a Friday night similar to mine.
Anyway, that's why he was late.
Anyway, so we were at our favorite restaurant, and we were thinking of moving on to somewhere else. But I'm not much of a partier, so I didn't know where to go. Claire was being particularly annoying about it. Finally, Jenny stepped in and saved the day and was nice enough to suggest a particular place.
When we got there, Ruth and I used the bathroom, and we both got a drink from the bar. We were perfectly happy to just talk to each other. Ruth was leaving for a while, and I know that I'm going to miss her dearly. It was our last night together.
Two men approached our group. Neither of them were particularly attractive. The first guy, who has a beard, was a jerk. When I talked to him about my current employment situation, he was totally judgemental and unkind. And then he also berated a recent decision I had made. Part of wished I could explain my decision, but how to even begin? All of my decisions reach back into my personal history; even deciding where the genesis of a decision came from is hard to decide. I could have explained about all the reasons, but it would be a long story, and he had already demonstrated a lack of care for my personal feelings. No thanks. No way was I going home with this guy.
His friend seemed sweet enough, though a bit naive. I liked him alright. If he didn't have such a crap friend, I might have been willing to give him more of a chance.
They were both in finance, which later on made Ruth just cringe and complain. "Ack! Finance. So boring." I had to concur. What could girls like Ruth and I have in common with someone like that?
Jenny and Claire were both really liking these guys for reasons I never quite figured out. The guys bought us cheap beer, which was totally crap.
As I was standing there, finishing the beer up, so man at the bar told me I could have a drink that had been left there next to him. He felt the need to tell me no one had taken it and that it wasn't drugged, which made me disinterested.
Eventually, Ruth and decided to go home, and off we went, leaving Claire and Jenny. We walked down the street, Ruth leading the way, as I wasn't totally sure I knew where we were going. Ruth wanted to get some McDonald's before we went back home, and I reluctantly agreed. The only time I seem to eat McDonald's is when I am with Ruth, who seems to prefer it as "drunk food."
This time, ordering wasn't nearly as painful. Ruth got herself some burger and fries and a massive drink, and we trooped back home. We went to sit in the lounge. Ruth didn't want to wake Hayley, her roommate, up, and we ate out there.
There was a Norwegian girl sitting there when we came in, which surprised me because we usually are left alone there that late on Friday nights. She talked to us about how much she hated old women, which actually sort of bothered me. There was nothing about this young woman that I found all that impressive, and why she felt the need to hate on old women and things about them I don't generally find that terrible, really confuses me. Ruth and I exchanged some of our patented looks.
Eventually, we went our separate ways to go to bed. It was around three in the morning before I finally went to bed.
I got about around nine fifteen the next morning, and I was surprisingly okay. In fact, I felt almost great. The only thing that wasn't so good was that I was possibly still drunk. When I first woke up, I still had that swimming feeling that comes with being drunk.
I had breakfast with Hayley and Ruth. I couldn't seem to stomach my omelet, so I gave up on it. Ruth informed me of what had happened to Claire and Jenny the rest of the night. Apparently, Claire and Jenny went to another bar, and Jane tried to buy pot from someone. Claire would not allow this to happen and dragged Jenny home. Apparently Jenny refused to talk to Claire the rest of the way home. They got home sometime between five and six.
(Even later on, Jane would claim that she didn't remember any of this, though Claire certainly did. She also was so drunk that she didn't get up all Saturday.)
I had to work Saturday. I usually don't, but as I was walking to work, I was struck by how nice of a day it was shaping up to be. I walked down the street, admiring the sunshine and the warmth and the air, which felt strangely clear and fresh and almost as if it had never been used before. It was relatively quiet, but there were people around, already out enjoying the day like I was.
I ended up at work way earlier than necessary. It took me a while to figure out where I needed to go, but once I did, seeing my coworker wasn't around, I sat down and waited for him. As I sat there, being awkward, two other people at the table next to me were setting up. A few even talked to me, saying nice things.
One of the nice people was named Craig. He came over to talk to me. He said he knew my coworker, that he had seen him the night before. "He had an empty bottle of wine."
This particular coworker doesn't strike me as the kind to drink wine, but it sort of put an interesting image in my mind. Sounded like he a Friday night similar to mine.
Anyway, that's why he was late.
Friday, April 8, 2011
Told You So
Last night, I was sitting in the lounge watching tv when Ruth came in. She was drunk, and giggly, because her drunk is always giggly. And she had a problem.
A few weeks back, she had gone out with a guy over dinner. And then the next week, drinks. And then the next week, drinks again. I told her this was all a bad idea, because he was paying for things, and that meant there were certain expectations.
Ruth was totally thick when I said that, and I tried to explain to her that going out with a guy multiple times, like this, implied they were dating. Ruth and Jenny decided this was ridiculous, that's not how it works. Lavvy, thankfully, sided with me, saying that this guy (Ruth won't even give me a name because she's paranoid I'll track him down, which is so strange, because I honestly didn't even think that until Ruth made the suggestion) probably does think they're dating, and that's the important bit.
I told Ruth she needed to have a face-to-face meeting, gently tell him she's seeing someone else and that she would like to be friends and drinking buddies. Ruth never likes this idea. She doesn't want to meet face-to-face, she'd rather send an email. (This always causes me to wonder what is wrong with her; who the hell sends emails like that in this day and age? What is this, 1997?) Then I suggested that she just not-subtly mention her boyfriend, as a way of indicating his importance to her to this guy friend. No, she just gives another exasperated sigh.
So last night, after getting drunk together, this guy tried to kiss Ruth.
"I told you so," I said, as I sat there. Ruth apparently told him, in her flummoxed state, that she had a wife, which she explained to me and made no sense. It might have been the drunken state.
Ruth went into a bit of a rant about boys and how stupid they are and how they always manage to find her. She told me about this guy named Ben, who is coming to visit soon.
"I'm going to make Ben and this other guy meet, because then they'll see their stupid behavior within each other and then themselves and then they won't chase after me."
I disagree. I suspect that these guys are not going to get that they are both being ridiculous, and instead, they will just see that the other one likes Ruth and it'll turn competitive.
(As a side note, what do you readers think about this?)
She told me some stories about when her Dad had cancer and she was crying and Ben kissed her, even though he had a girlfriend.
"Wait," I said. "I though crying was a turnoff for guys."
"Really?" said Ruth. "I've found it's a great way to get guys. It probably makes them feel all needed and protective."
Oh great. It's not enough for a guy to like me, I have to make him feel like he's being a man and protecting me.
We giggled for a while, talking about other things like our work, and she complained to me about this essay she's writing and we were relatively merry. Then one of the spazzier women came in wanting to watch a tv documentary about 2012. (I'm so not even kidding.) We let her, even though she apologized twenty times and tried to get us to stay. I explained to her that we were fine and were leaving anyway.
I wish Ruth would have listened to me and nipped this thing in the bud. Something tells me there's going to be a lot more drama on the way, even if she does avoid this guy as she's decided to.
A few weeks back, she had gone out with a guy over dinner. And then the next week, drinks. And then the next week, drinks again. I told her this was all a bad idea, because he was paying for things, and that meant there were certain expectations.
Ruth was totally thick when I said that, and I tried to explain to her that going out with a guy multiple times, like this, implied they were dating. Ruth and Jenny decided this was ridiculous, that's not how it works. Lavvy, thankfully, sided with me, saying that this guy (Ruth won't even give me a name because she's paranoid I'll track him down, which is so strange, because I honestly didn't even think that until Ruth made the suggestion) probably does think they're dating, and that's the important bit.
I told Ruth she needed to have a face-to-face meeting, gently tell him she's seeing someone else and that she would like to be friends and drinking buddies. Ruth never likes this idea. She doesn't want to meet face-to-face, she'd rather send an email. (This always causes me to wonder what is wrong with her; who the hell sends emails like that in this day and age? What is this, 1997?) Then I suggested that she just not-subtly mention her boyfriend, as a way of indicating his importance to her to this guy friend. No, she just gives another exasperated sigh.
So last night, after getting drunk together, this guy tried to kiss Ruth.
"I told you so," I said, as I sat there. Ruth apparently told him, in her flummoxed state, that she had a wife, which she explained to me and made no sense. It might have been the drunken state.
Ruth went into a bit of a rant about boys and how stupid they are and how they always manage to find her. She told me about this guy named Ben, who is coming to visit soon.
"I'm going to make Ben and this other guy meet, because then they'll see their stupid behavior within each other and then themselves and then they won't chase after me."
I disagree. I suspect that these guys are not going to get that they are both being ridiculous, and instead, they will just see that the other one likes Ruth and it'll turn competitive.
(As a side note, what do you readers think about this?)
She told me some stories about when her Dad had cancer and she was crying and Ben kissed her, even though he had a girlfriend.
"Wait," I said. "I though crying was a turnoff for guys."
"Really?" said Ruth. "I've found it's a great way to get guys. It probably makes them feel all needed and protective."
Oh great. It's not enough for a guy to like me, I have to make him feel like he's being a man and protecting me.
We giggled for a while, talking about other things like our work, and she complained to me about this essay she's writing and we were relatively merry. Then one of the spazzier women came in wanting to watch a tv documentary about 2012. (I'm so not even kidding.) We let her, even though she apologized twenty times and tried to get us to stay. I explained to her that we were fine and were leaving anyway.
I wish Ruth would have listened to me and nipped this thing in the bud. Something tells me there's going to be a lot more drama on the way, even if she does avoid this guy as she's decided to.
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
Women Have to Stick Together
I had dinner with Ruth. She's been off on some socializing stuff, and she told me about how she was at a casino, and a stripper offered her a free lap dance.
"Male or female?" I asked. Devil's in the details.
Lavvy was there, and she awkwardly gulped her food. Claire started laughing. "That was brilliant!"
"Female," Ruth asked, ignoring the whole Lavvy/Claire thing. "There was this creepy man on the other side of the room."
"Oh," I see, I said. "She was trying to get away from him, and you offered her temporary shelter?"
"Something like that," Ruth said.
Good for her.
"Male or female?" I asked. Devil's in the details.
Lavvy was there, and she awkwardly gulped her food. Claire started laughing. "That was brilliant!"
"Female," Ruth asked, ignoring the whole Lavvy/Claire thing. "There was this creepy man on the other side of the room."
"Oh," I see, I said. "She was trying to get away from him, and you offered her temporary shelter?"
"Something like that," Ruth said.
Good for her.
Thursday, March 3, 2011
Resolution
I had to be here for breakfast, because Lavvy needed to talk to Ruth and I. We were hoping to have a brief meeting with Faith about the incident Tuesday evening. Lavvy told Ruth and I what the plan was as we ate. She told us she didn't want a confrontation, just to have it on record in case there was a second incident.
But when we got up there, Faith was nowhere to be found. Ruth had to go to work and then was leaving for a conference, and Lavvy had to go to school and then was returning home for the weekend, so neither of them would until Monday anyway. Lavvy said she would email Faith for a meeting Monday morning, which we'd hopefully get. It's sort of anticlimatic.
So I'm still sort of waiting on the resolution to this, whatever it might end up being.
But when we got up there, Faith was nowhere to be found. Ruth had to go to work and then was leaving for a conference, and Lavvy had to go to school and then was returning home for the weekend, so neither of them would until Monday anyway. Lavvy said she would email Faith for a meeting Monday morning, which we'd hopefully get. It's sort of anticlimatic.
So I'm still sort of waiting on the resolution to this, whatever it might end up being.
Saturday, February 12, 2011
The Return of Ruth
Today at lunch I was happy to discover that Ruth was back. We had a good time chatting with one another.
I told her that I had missed her very much. "I talked about Bernie Maddow with the girls a couple of days ago, and they very politely listened," I said, pausing for effect. "And then changed the subject."
Ruth laughed. "They must not realize what kind of clothes he designs." This, in turn, made me laugh.
"I think," she said, carrying on, "that being like this makes us unfit for general company. I was hanging out with a bunch of history post-graduates, and the conversations revolved around things like Kennedy's Education Reforms."
I don't know how much I would want to talk about that. To be honest, I don't really know much about that.
This got us talking about what some of our mutual friends do like, including the Bachelor. "Doesn't anyone realize what a jerk he is?" Ruth asked.
It's so good to have her back.
I told her that I had missed her very much. "I talked about Bernie Maddow with the girls a couple of days ago, and they very politely listened," I said, pausing for effect. "And then changed the subject."
Ruth laughed. "They must not realize what kind of clothes he designs." This, in turn, made me laugh.
"I think," she said, carrying on, "that being like this makes us unfit for general company. I was hanging out with a bunch of history post-graduates, and the conversations revolved around things like Kennedy's Education Reforms."
I don't know how much I would want to talk about that. To be honest, I don't really know much about that.
This got us talking about what some of our mutual friends do like, including the Bachelor. "Doesn't anyone realize what a jerk he is?" Ruth asked.
It's so good to have her back.
Friday, January 28, 2011
The Night of Ring Day
Dinner tonight was quiet. Ruth is gone and Elizabeth didn't show up, so it was sort of a smaller group than usual. Jenny talked a bit about her first hangover and Claire and her struck up a conversation talking about Scottish slang.
Preadad came over to sit with us again tonight. I really don't like her, and I wish, honestly, she wouldn't talk to me, because I hate making the effort to be nice to her. It sounds terrible, but I sort of like it when I and someone else decide we don't like each other, and since there aren't many circumstances in which we have to talk to one other, we simply avoid each other, and thus avoid confrontation. I especially like this because it allows me to avoid trying to be better natured than I truly am.
It was all big news that we were going out tonight to celebrate Rachel getting a new job. I found myself wondering how much I should put into my appearance. I really don't want to make an effort tonight, and honestly if this wasn't for Rachel, I wouldn't go out at all and just stay in and watch a movie.
Nina asked me to buy toilet paper, and since I was running low on shampoo, in between dinner and going out I went to get some. Pharmacies around here are shabby, and this one was no different, with the computer freezing up as I tried to check out.
I finally got home, and put on the lightest bit of makeup, and then went downstairs. On the way down, I ran into Mimi. She gave me this strange speech about when one should press the button on the elevator. "Wait five seconds before you press it."
"Okay," I said. I continued saying that, even though she didn't really wait for me to confirm I was listening, just talked about how you have to wait, counting it out for me in demonstration. It's not as if it matters: the door closes when it is ready to; pressing the button at one second or another doesn't make a difference; you still end up at the same place at the same time. But everyone sort of humors Mimi because she seems to be at least a little bit mad.
Downstairs we had a ring day celebration. This is some strange game Elizabeth made up to celebrate achievements of various kinds. The last time was for Rebecca, and for whatever reason I missed it. (Had I gone out that even with Mikey? I can't recall.) Anyway, this was my first ring day, so I didn't know exactly what to expect, though Elizabeth had explained it to me once.
Basically, Elizabeth brought this giant hula hoop, covered with ribbons, and she told Rachel she had to walk through it. Several people took pictures as Rachel crawled through in in slow motion. (She even said the word "slow motion" as slowly as possible.)
Then Elizabeth gave Rachel this ring, which I was really surprised to say looked really nice. It was sort of knot set with green stones. Then everyone had to twist the ring around Rachel's ring going towards the pinkie finger. "Don't go the other way or she'll be a nun," Elizabeth insisted. I honestly don't know if that's true or not, but I really don't know much about how nuns are made other than to say they are married to God and whatnot.
There were other people sort of milling about and you could tell they thought we were barking mad, and they were sort of laughing at our escapades. I hate to say it, but adults are always making up little games, even if they don't talk about it. (Especially if they don't talk about.)
Lola was there, and I was sort of surprised to see her. I don't remember her being as pretty as she was today. Maybe I am appreciating her now that I don't see her on a regular basis and she doesn't have a chance to annoy me twice a day.
We went out to the bar then. When we got there, we had a bit of trouble. The woman wouldn't let us sit down at a table. The girls prefer this bar because they let us sit down. I realized if we were here an hour later it probably wouldn't be a problem.
Amanda made the comment that "the customer is always right," and that service jobs are all about giving people what they want. She's right, of course, but it is one of the things that I am not good at, even when I remind myself. I am just naturally not inclined towards other people.
I think what was sort of irritating was that Rachel had actually made reservations before hand, and they were giving her trouble now.
After a bit of trouble, they let us sit down. I tried to be super gracious. I'd been to this bar before and I had never seen the young woman in question, which makes me wonder if she is new.
We had the same waiter we had a couple of weeks ago when I went out with the girls. A bunch of them ordered margaritas. I noticed a listening for a spiked Arnold Palmer, so I ordered that.
It was horrible. Like, really rank. I actually have not been impressed by this place in terms of drinks. Long Island Ice Teas and Captain and Cokes are also really bad at this place. And I'm not a fan of margaritas.
Meanwhile, I chatted with the girls. Lola sat on the other side of the table, so I didn't really mind her at all tonight. I sat with Jenny and Claire. Jenny and I complained a lot about various mutual enemies. We sort of filled Claire in on how Jenny has become Mimi's friend, though Jenny really hates her. Everyone enjoyed my story of the latest run-in with Mimi on the elevator.
Jenny also knew somethings about Mimi I didn't. According to Jenny, Mimi has four sisters, and all of them are married and normal. Mimi was apparently showing Jenny a family album and she had all these pictures of her nephews and nieces, and none of them were smiling in any of them.
"That's because they were with Mimi," Jenny explained.
Preadad came over to sit with us again tonight. I really don't like her, and I wish, honestly, she wouldn't talk to me, because I hate making the effort to be nice to her. It sounds terrible, but I sort of like it when I and someone else decide we don't like each other, and since there aren't many circumstances in which we have to talk to one other, we simply avoid each other, and thus avoid confrontation. I especially like this because it allows me to avoid trying to be better natured than I truly am.
It was all big news that we were going out tonight to celebrate Rachel getting a new job. I found myself wondering how much I should put into my appearance. I really don't want to make an effort tonight, and honestly if this wasn't for Rachel, I wouldn't go out at all and just stay in and watch a movie.
Nina asked me to buy toilet paper, and since I was running low on shampoo, in between dinner and going out I went to get some. Pharmacies around here are shabby, and this one was no different, with the computer freezing up as I tried to check out.
I finally got home, and put on the lightest bit of makeup, and then went downstairs. On the way down, I ran into Mimi. She gave me this strange speech about when one should press the button on the elevator. "Wait five seconds before you press it."
"Okay," I said. I continued saying that, even though she didn't really wait for me to confirm I was listening, just talked about how you have to wait, counting it out for me in demonstration. It's not as if it matters: the door closes when it is ready to; pressing the button at one second or another doesn't make a difference; you still end up at the same place at the same time. But everyone sort of humors Mimi because she seems to be at least a little bit mad.
Downstairs we had a ring day celebration. This is some strange game Elizabeth made up to celebrate achievements of various kinds. The last time was for Rebecca, and for whatever reason I missed it. (Had I gone out that even with Mikey? I can't recall.) Anyway, this was my first ring day, so I didn't know exactly what to expect, though Elizabeth had explained it to me once.
Basically, Elizabeth brought this giant hula hoop, covered with ribbons, and she told Rachel she had to walk through it. Several people took pictures as Rachel crawled through in in slow motion. (She even said the word "slow motion" as slowly as possible.)
Then Elizabeth gave Rachel this ring, which I was really surprised to say looked really nice. It was sort of knot set with green stones. Then everyone had to twist the ring around Rachel's ring going towards the pinkie finger. "Don't go the other way or she'll be a nun," Elizabeth insisted. I honestly don't know if that's true or not, but I really don't know much about how nuns are made other than to say they are married to God and whatnot.
There were other people sort of milling about and you could tell they thought we were barking mad, and they were sort of laughing at our escapades. I hate to say it, but adults are always making up little games, even if they don't talk about it. (Especially if they don't talk about.)
Lola was there, and I was sort of surprised to see her. I don't remember her being as pretty as she was today. Maybe I am appreciating her now that I don't see her on a regular basis and she doesn't have a chance to annoy me twice a day.
We went out to the bar then. When we got there, we had a bit of trouble. The woman wouldn't let us sit down at a table. The girls prefer this bar because they let us sit down. I realized if we were here an hour later it probably wouldn't be a problem.
Amanda made the comment that "the customer is always right," and that service jobs are all about giving people what they want. She's right, of course, but it is one of the things that I am not good at, even when I remind myself. I am just naturally not inclined towards other people.
I think what was sort of irritating was that Rachel had actually made reservations before hand, and they were giving her trouble now.
After a bit of trouble, they let us sit down. I tried to be super gracious. I'd been to this bar before and I had never seen the young woman in question, which makes me wonder if she is new.
We had the same waiter we had a couple of weeks ago when I went out with the girls. A bunch of them ordered margaritas. I noticed a listening for a spiked Arnold Palmer, so I ordered that.
It was horrible. Like, really rank. I actually have not been impressed by this place in terms of drinks. Long Island Ice Teas and Captain and Cokes are also really bad at this place. And I'm not a fan of margaritas.
Meanwhile, I chatted with the girls. Lola sat on the other side of the table, so I didn't really mind her at all tonight. I sat with Jenny and Claire. Jenny and I complained a lot about various mutual enemies. We sort of filled Claire in on how Jenny has become Mimi's friend, though Jenny really hates her. Everyone enjoyed my story of the latest run-in with Mimi on the elevator.
Jenny also knew somethings about Mimi I didn't. According to Jenny, Mimi has four sisters, and all of them are married and normal. Mimi was apparently showing Jenny a family album and she had all these pictures of her nephews and nieces, and none of them were smiling in any of them.
"That's because they were with Mimi," Jenny explained.
Saturday, January 22, 2011
Procrastination
I swear to God I actually had a reason for walking past. But Ruth is leaving soon for a couple of weeks, so I sat down with her. She was watching the news, and we talked about the weather and how hilariously awful local news is. (So, so bad.) She ranted to me a little about how bad the food is here and about what proper biscuits are. And then a little about a new book she got, Assassination Vacation, about a road trip to see where various Presidents were murdered. We ended with watching some of The Simpsons, and we gently telling her that she looked just like a particular character.
I'm so good at wasting time I really wish someone would offer me a job doing it.
I'm so good at wasting time I really wish someone would offer me a job doing it.
Sunday, January 16, 2011
Cafeteria Crushes
Had lunch with a bunch of my friends today.
At another table there was some sort of debacle. We still haven't figured out what it is, but it involved making an hour of Lenny's life bad. This is what usually happens when certain people get unhappy: it doesn't matter who is actually at fault, if you've made the mistake of being nearby, you're the target for their anger.
Also sad is that my cafeteria crush was not in today. I haven't seen him around all weekend. Claire has finally relented that he is not, in fact, too young for me. Jenny thinks he's very much around twenty, which sounds just about perfect. It also appears that because he so much more polite than a bunch of the other cafeteria workers about that he is generally a favorite with everyone else. Though apparently no one else is as rapid for him as I am.
Lunch itself was sort of terrible. I thought they had set lime jello out, so I took a bunch. I was so happy to have jello. Turns out it was mint jelly, and that people put it on lamb. I don't eat lamb very much and I certainly don't know what to do with mint jelly. So I was very disappointed by it.
But the best news is this: Ruth is back! I saw her walk into the cafeteria and it was just like old times. We were back to having our little private conversations and giggles with one another. I have missed her so much. I love being around her; she is one of the few people who I feel I implicitly understand and vice versa.
I asked her what she did on her Christmas break, which was mostly traveling to see old friends. (Not doing her work, you'll notice.) She said her sister got to the family house just in the nick of time, Christmas eve.
She has a new roommate, who she described as a "belly dancer." Anything, really, would be better than her old one, who was so mean. If Ruth had come maybe two days earlier, she might have ended up with me.
At another table there was some sort of debacle. We still haven't figured out what it is, but it involved making an hour of Lenny's life bad. This is what usually happens when certain people get unhappy: it doesn't matter who is actually at fault, if you've made the mistake of being nearby, you're the target for their anger.
Also sad is that my cafeteria crush was not in today. I haven't seen him around all weekend. Claire has finally relented that he is not, in fact, too young for me. Jenny thinks he's very much around twenty, which sounds just about perfect. It also appears that because he so much more polite than a bunch of the other cafeteria workers about that he is generally a favorite with everyone else. Though apparently no one else is as rapid for him as I am.
Lunch itself was sort of terrible. I thought they had set lime jello out, so I took a bunch. I was so happy to have jello. Turns out it was mint jelly, and that people put it on lamb. I don't eat lamb very much and I certainly don't know what to do with mint jelly. So I was very disappointed by it.
But the best news is this: Ruth is back! I saw her walk into the cafeteria and it was just like old times. We were back to having our little private conversations and giggles with one another. I have missed her so much. I love being around her; she is one of the few people who I feel I implicitly understand and vice versa.
I asked her what she did on her Christmas break, which was mostly traveling to see old friends. (Not doing her work, you'll notice.) She said her sister got to the family house just in the nick of time, Christmas eve.
She has a new roommate, who she described as a "belly dancer." Anything, really, would be better than her old one, who was so mean. If Ruth had come maybe two days earlier, she might have ended up with me.
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