Back in LA after a very interesting holiday! It was very nice to get out of LA and slow down for a minute. I think my mind and body really needed it....but traveling really takes a lot out of me. I’m usually a really light packer but for some reason that went out the window this time. There were a million bags between me and the twins and all of them were HEAVY. It was cool though.
I spent Christmas with my family (who get crazier with each year). I had a lot of fun and got to see some of my family that I had not seen in quite some time. I think there’s still a kind of cloud hanging over my immediate family…what with my Grandma and one of my Aunts having passed away in the last couple of years. Ever since Gramce has been gone my family has been a little askew. I hope one of these years we can get back to the way we used to be…I know that would make my Grandma proud. I got to visit some of the old folk who were a big part of my life when I was a child, more extended family but still important to me. It seems like it takes so little to make elders happy…just a moment of your time is so special to them. My daughter came with me while I was visiting and it was weird…at some point I remembered being in her shoes….sitting at some old peoples house who I really didn’t know…feeling like my mama was staying & talking too long. Little did I know I was learning something. I was learning the value of family and giving your time and respecting the elders of the family. I felt the torch passing and now my little girl is learning the same lessons…one she probably won’t even realize until she’s my age, with her own daughter. Pretty cool, huh?
For New Years Eve I went up to visit a friend in Virginia. This was….interesting to say the least. First of all, I took a bus…yes, a bus (!) to Raleigh to pick up my friends car (which she so graciously let me borrow! Thanks Ava, you always come through girl!). What can I say about the bus…not much other than I now vividly remember why I don’t ever want to get on one again..lol. Between the disgusting smells, and questionable people with tattoos on their faces...it’s just not something I need to do again any time soon! I remember the first time I took the bus I was headed to Chicago with nothing but a duffel bag, a couple hundred dollars and a made up mind…I sat next to a guy who was very irate because he said he saw all of these witches out of the window who were, I guess, taunting him. Yeah…the bus….Anyway…my friend that I was visiting met me at the bus station in Raleigh and we drove up to VA from there. We’ve been hanging out for a little while now and it seemed like a cool idea for me to come up and see where he’s from. The idea was probably a little better in theory than in execution…lol. Don’t get me wrong, I had a pretty good time and his family was very, very nice and quite hospitable. New Year’s Eve was fun actually a lot of fun. We went to a party at a neighbor’s house across the street…and from what I remember it was a really good time :). They had good food and drinks, party favors, and I even got in on a game of Spades!! I don’t think I’ve played Spades since college! My partner and I lost but it was still a bunch of fun, and I got to do a lil’ smack talking, too. I also made a new friend that hung out with me a lot at the party, her name is Lauren and she has to be one of the most adorable 2 year olds on the planet. Sooooooo cute! She reminded me of my daughter when she was a baby. Midnight came and there was celebration in the air…very nice moments….yes, very nice indeed. Though some aspects could have been better, it was such an improvement from last years New Years Eve, that I really can’t complain. Not to mention the fact that if you’d asked me this summer what I’d be doing for New Years…well…let’s just say it’s all good!
A couple days later my friends family took us to one of their friends houses whom they refer to as “Snake Man”. To say that he really, really, really likes reptiles would be an understatement. He had turtles and geicos and all kinds of snakes. He brought each snake out one by one and the last 3 that he brought out were rattlesnakes! From the sound of their rattle to the sweat on Snake Man’s brow, they were obviously nothing to play with. He was controlling them with 2 metal snake handling sticks and they were giving him a run for his money! Two of them were so riled up that they were actually striking at themselves trying to get away…and remember, we’re in this guys living room so all of this is happening like 10 ft away…I have to admit, I was a lil’ shook! As I watched this man try desperately to hold on to this snake who was determined to get away…I couldn’t help help but think about how often we (who am I kidding, ME) try so desperately to hold on to things that are obviously not good for us. Relationships, people, jobs…whatever. Like Snake Man we (I) sometimes try sooo hard to hold on to things and make it manageable and all the while everyone else is looking at you like you’re crazy….b/c they see how unhealthy the situation is….they see that the other party is unwilling or unable to comply, and if you keep messin’ around with it, you a$$ might get bit…LOL! Well, in ’06, I’mma do my best to learn the lesson that snake man obviously hasn’t (he’s been bitten on more than one occasion by his venomous pals). I’m not gonna say its easy. Knowing when to “hold ‘em” and knowing when to “fold ‘em” can be tricky…you don’t want to fold ‘em too early or hold ‘em too long….but it’s ’06 and I’m determined to get it right.
NYE & Snake Man's house
I spent Christmas with my family (who get crazier with each year). I had a lot of fun and got to see some of my family that I had not seen in quite some time. I think there’s still a kind of cloud hanging over my immediate family…what with my Grandma and one of my Aunts having passed away in the last couple of years. Ever since Gramce has been gone my family has been a little askew. I hope one of these years we can get back to the way we used to be…I know that would make my Grandma proud. I got to visit some of the old folk who were a big part of my life when I was a child, more extended family but still important to me. It seems like it takes so little to make elders happy…just a moment of your time is so special to them. My daughter came with me while I was visiting and it was weird…at some point I remembered being in her shoes….sitting at some old peoples house who I really didn’t know…feeling like my mama was staying & talking too long. Little did I know I was learning something. I was learning the value of family and giving your time and respecting the elders of the family. I felt the torch passing and now my little girl is learning the same lessons…one she probably won’t even realize until she’s my age, with her own daughter. Pretty cool, huh?
For New Years Eve I went up to visit a friend in Virginia. This was….interesting to say the least. First of all, I took a bus…yes, a bus (!) to Raleigh to pick up my friends car (which she so graciously let me borrow! Thanks Ava, you always come through girl!). What can I say about the bus…not much other than I now vividly remember why I don’t ever want to get on one again..lol. Between the disgusting smells, and questionable people with tattoos on their faces...it’s just not something I need to do again any time soon! I remember the first time I took the bus I was headed to Chicago with nothing but a duffel bag, a couple hundred dollars and a made up mind…I sat next to a guy who was very irate because he said he saw all of these witches out of the window who were, I guess, taunting him. Yeah…the bus….Anyway…my friend that I was visiting met me at the bus station in Raleigh and we drove up to VA from there. We’ve been hanging out for a little while now and it seemed like a cool idea for me to come up and see where he’s from. The idea was probably a little better in theory than in execution…lol. Don’t get me wrong, I had a pretty good time and his family was very, very nice and quite hospitable. New Year’s Eve was fun actually a lot of fun. We went to a party at a neighbor’s house across the street…and from what I remember it was a really good time :). They had good food and drinks, party favors, and I even got in on a game of Spades!! I don’t think I’ve played Spades since college! My partner and I lost but it was still a bunch of fun, and I got to do a lil’ smack talking, too. I also made a new friend that hung out with me a lot at the party, her name is Lauren and she has to be one of the most adorable 2 year olds on the planet. Sooooooo cute! She reminded me of my daughter when she was a baby. Midnight came and there was celebration in the air…very nice moments….yes, very nice indeed. Though some aspects could have been better, it was such an improvement from last years New Years Eve, that I really can’t complain. Not to mention the fact that if you’d asked me this summer what I’d be doing for New Years…well…let’s just say it’s all good!
A couple days later my friends family took us to one of their friends houses whom they refer to as “Snake Man”. To say that he really, really, really likes reptiles would be an understatement. He had turtles and geicos and all kinds of snakes. He brought each snake out one by one and the last 3 that he brought out were rattlesnakes! From the sound of their rattle to the sweat on Snake Man’s brow, they were obviously nothing to play with. He was controlling them with 2 metal snake handling sticks and they were giving him a run for his money! Two of them were so riled up that they were actually striking at themselves trying to get away…and remember, we’re in this guys living room so all of this is happening like 10 ft away…I have to admit, I was a lil’ shook! As I watched this man try desperately to hold on to this snake who was determined to get away…I couldn’t help help but think about how often we (who am I kidding, ME) try so desperately to hold on to things that are obviously not good for us. Relationships, people, jobs…whatever. Like Snake Man we (I) sometimes try sooo hard to hold on to things and make it manageable and all the while everyone else is looking at you like you’re crazy….b/c they see how unhealthy the situation is….they see that the other party is unwilling or unable to comply, and if you keep messin’ around with it, you a$$ might get bit…LOL! Well, in ’06, I’mma do my best to learn the lesson that snake man obviously hasn’t (he’s been bitten on more than one occasion by his venomous pals). I’m not gonna say its easy. Knowing when to “hold ‘em” and knowing when to “fold ‘em” can be tricky…you don’t want to fold ‘em too early or hold ‘em too long….but it’s ’06 and I’m determined to get it right.
NYE & Snake Man's house
posted by Jillian at 7:08 AM
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