I don’t like to kiss and tell, for multiple reasons. But there’s this guy. And he’s completely amazing. And i feel incredibly lucky right now, and i think maybe he does too.
Happy Steph. <3
We held a memorial service for Grandma on Saturday. I didn’t want Mom to have to do everything, so i stepped up and took responsibility for some of the planning and execution. It was a nice service, with all family members doing the talking rather than someone who barely knew her. Mom told us about Grandma’s life, i read a poem that i wrote for her, Tim, Mary Kaye and Vicki said a few words about her and Danny sang a song whose words were from the poem “Do not stand at my grave and weep.” Amy’s soundtrack brought everything together beautifully.
The photo collage i put together for the service
The cover of the program i created for the service
The chapel where the service was held
After the service the family had a big dinner together, and then we gathered at Grandpa’s house and sat around a fire pit in the back yard talking for hours. It was really lovely, and i only wish that all my siblings could have been there. I heard talk of an upcoming family reunion, so hopefully a similar gathering will take place under happier circumstances soon.
We miss you, Grandma.
digging you
and digging graves
and digging holes
with words like shovels
hoping you’ll come meet me at the bottom
and help explore the wonders
of the caves
below.
Life is moving at lightspeed lately. I’ve been making so many friends, mainly thanks to Twitter, and i’ve been spending a lot of time getting to know them and generally having a blast. There was one point last Friday night when a group of us were walking around the Court Avenue district here in DM in search of food when i really felt like i was back in Europe again, enjoying the city and food and intoxication and excited conversation in the middle of the night with so many cool people. It was wonderful.
Yesterday was successively the peak and the crash of the past week or two. I had an incredible date after work, and when i got home i realized i’d missed several calls and messages from my family. My grandmother had passed away an hour previous, much to everyone’s sad surprise. I was able to be with my mother within a few minutes of hearing the news, and so were quite a few of our family members, for which we’re thankful. I’ve never actually experienced a death so close to home, and so i don’t know what to expect from here on out. I’m really grateful for all the support i’ve gotten from friends both old and new. I’m doing alright. I love you guys.
This is just how the story goes.
I should be getting paid for this.
So i got this little Target coupon book in the mail yesterday. I guess the former resident of this apartment was on their mailing list for one reason or another, and i’m benefiting from that. It’s two dozen or so pages long, and each spread has three coupons on one side and a portrait on the other, like so:
I needed a bunch of stuff anyway, so i took it with me to Target today. I found a couple of things that i thought were blog-worthy.
I didn’t even need any pasta, per se–or have a coupon for it, for that matter–but this packaging grabbed me. I thought it was lovely, especially compared to all the other bread-and-butter pasta packages.
I checked out the ice cream ’cause i happened to have a coupon for it, and – lo and behold!:
Green tea Haagen Dazs?? Hell-o! I’ve been looking for green tea ice cream for years and all i could find was some dairy-free crap that tasted as bad as it sounds. But now A. i’ve found some, B. it’s freakin’ Haagen Dazs, and C. I saved a dollar on it, which makes it extra-sweet.
I bought a ton of stuff, and when i got home i flipped through the coupon book again to see if there were any coupons left that i might use, and suddenly the design made a whole lot of sense:
How clever!
And the final reason that i love Target is that soon, with the help of my dear friend Kelly who occasionally works at Target and therefore gets an employee discount, i shall acquire a new iPod touch for as much as $57 off the retail price. Hell. Yes.