if you believe in fairies

In 1999, in anticipation of my trip to Paris, I received my first passport. I'm lucky they even let me into the country, considering the horrible photograph (Rosanne Rosanadanna frizzy pyramid of hair, enormous Sally Jessy Rafael glasses, heinous striped sweater), but they did, and I was grateful.

Since that trip to France, I've gotten three more stamps in my passport: Norway, Bermuda, and Japan. Not as many as I would like, but considering that the only assets to my name are a 1996 Chevy Cavalier with a big dent on the driver's side door and four video game consoles (six if you count the ColecoVision and Atari 2600 gathering dust in Daddy-O's basement), I think I've been pretty lucky. And when you add my health and the continued health of my friends and family, being able to move to California, and the boyfriend of my dreams (yes, I know, I could test Jenna Jameson's gag reflex with this shit), I almost feel like I haven't got the right to ask for anything else.

But I am.

Two things, in fact, and I'll start with the altruistic one first.

My brother, R, is so shy he makes me look like Paris Hilton, yet despite all that, he worked up the courage to ask someone out...and she said yes. He sent me a gushy e-mail about how pretty and funny and bubbly she is, and how excited he is and how hopeful he is that it goes well, and my heart ached in that way it does when someone you love is putting themselves out there and you're afraid they're going to be hurt or disappointed. He's such a melancholy guy, thanks to a combination of bad luck, bad choices, and a series of unfortunate events, and I think having a girlfriend would be the best thing that could possibly happen to him.

So tomorrow, around 12PM CST, if you could direct a stream of good energy towards Minnesota, that would be keen.

The selfish part, which goes along with the opening lines: I recently sent in my application for a trip to Japan (Tokyo, Kyoto, and Osaka) at the end of March, and to put it mildly, it sounds like one assrockin' good time. Unfortunately, I just got an e-mail from Yumiko saying that they need at least twenty people to sign up before March 4th or the trip will be canceled.

This cannot, I repeat CANNOT, be allowed to happen under any circumstances.

Come on, everyone, let us raise our voices to the skies! Let us do positive visualizations of me sitting under the cherry trees, drinking in the beauty of Japan. Ah...the petals drift through the air, dancing like pink snow as they gently settle on my shoulders, and I am refreshed.

An entreaty in haiku:

O kindest Buddha!
Let there be nineteen more nerds
On this trip. Kthx.