34? How the hell did THAT happen?

Currently wearing: Black shirt, black floral skirt with asymmetrical hem and pink ribbon trim, flats, Les Nereides Douceur de Vanille perfume.

Currently reading: Stop That Girl by Elizabeth McKenzie

Currently in a shitty mood because: the damn DSL is disconnected at home in addition to the phone!


SATURDAY


At approximately 1AM, I drove over to Borders to pick up my preordered copy of the new Harry Potter book. Because it went on sale at midnight, I figured the crowd would be much smaller…and if it WAS smaller, I shudder to think what it was like earlier! The line was unbelievable, but it seemed to be going quickly, so I went ahead and took my place. I probably only had to wait about 20 minutes.

When I got home, I immediately plopped into one of the dish chairs and read until my eyes began to cross, and then I went to bed. I got up around 10AM and finished reading. Three words: holy WOW. You could have knocked me over with the proverbial feather.

At 2PM, I went over to G’s as usual, and the second he opened the door, I flung myself into his arms, squealing “Happy birthday!” We kissed for a long time, and then I sat down next to him and we watched a Jackie Chan movie on the Spike network. C and M came over around 7PM, and we all went to the deliso G could get one of those enormous, nasty pastrami sandwiches that he loves so much. Afterwards, we went back to his place and he opened presents. He did C and M’s first, and they gave him a box of Tic Tacs, the "birthday rat" (an inside joke) a Best Buy giftcard, and a Star Wars lottery ticket.

When my turn came, I gave him the card first…blank because I couldn’t find one with a good message. The outside showed a group of Buddhist monks on a roller coaster, laughing with their hands up in the air. Inside, I wrote something really sappy and enclosed $10 worth of lottery tickets (one of which was a Star Wars ticket; great minds think alike). He smiled and kissed me, and then he opened my present: Devil May Cry 3 for the PS2. He protested that I had been far too generous, which I waved off dismissively.

Afterwards, he wanted to watch Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring. It was the extended version, and I was so damn tired that I kept falling asleep. (I was especially embarrassed when I woke myself up snoring right after the Balrog scene!) C and M left after the movie, and G and I pretty much went to sleep right afterwards.


SUNDAY


Another one of our patented lazy days. We slept in late, and then we trudged downstairs for breakfast (waffles for me, bagels for him) while watching The Chappelle Show and Teen Titans. We played a bit of Haunting Ground, and then we watched anime on my laptop. We also played two games of Scene It, and he beat the crap out of me. Man, I hate losing!


MONDAY


It’s kind of sad when “sleeping in” on a Monday means 7:30AM. When G’s alarm went off, we groaned and he went to his bathroom while I went to “mine”. I showered and then went downstairs to wait for him. When he came down, we had breakfast and then he left for work. I went home and, apparently feeling masochistic, decided to do two loads of laundry. Whee!

After my clothes were done and put away, I went to Ralph’s to get diet lemon Coke, and then I stopped at Subway to get lunch. I went home and talked to Dad on the phone, and then I went to the TO library and went online. I also read magazines and checked out a couple of books. Afterwards, I went to Borders and read magazines for about an hour, and I bought the new issue of Shojo Beat---a pleasant surprise because I didn’t think the new issue was supposed to be out yet! Then I went home, ate my sandwich, read two stories in Shojo Beat, and took a nice long nap.

I got up around 6PM and put on my black silk floral dress and high-heeled mary janes, and then I prettied myself up as best I could, considering that it’s about 8000 degrees here and I was sweaty. C, M, and G picked me up around 7 and we went to Café Fiore. We had to sit outside, but it was actually pleasant out by then, so I didn’t mind. C and I both got Milky Way martinis, M had a mojito, and G stuck to water. Once we’d placed our orders, it was time for gifts! Carl and M got me the new Hot Hot Heat CD, and G got me the following:

*A $50 Borders giftcard
*A $50 Target giftcard
*A bottle of Jaqua Spicy Chai shower syrup (I passed it around so everyone could smell it, and everyone loved it!)
*A mousepad with a slot to put your own picture in. G had printed something out on his computer that showed Hello Kitty followed by an ampersand and then a blank space.

“Do you get it?” G asked.

“Uh…no,” I said, feeling spacy.

“The blank spot is where you put your mouse.”

“Where I put my…oh! Cat and mouse!”

My boy is nothing if not clever!

Needless to say, I was thrilled with all of my gifts. I couldn’t believe how generous G was, and I was really touched that C and M got me something too. G kissed my hand as I thanked everyone, and I swear I almost melted into a puddle of goo.

Dinner was, as expected, very good. I had margherita pizza and, for dessert, I got the bread pudding in creme anglaise sauce, which was heavenly. It came with blackberries and raspberries on top, and G coaxed me to try them, so I did. I was surprised to find that I really liked the raspberries! The look on his face when I speared another on my fork was priceless. Dear NS, I will do just about anything you ask.

When we were driving back to Thousand Oaks, G began talking about his insane need to take a crap, so once we reached C and M’s house, he made a beeline for the bathroom. I made small talk with them until he came out, and we left shortly thereafter. Once we got to my place, I promised I’d wave from the walkway to let him know I was safe. We kissed and hugged, and then I went upstairs, waved, and walked inside.

Not that I expected anything different, but G was so generous and so loving all night. He is one of the best things that’s ever happened to me and I am grateful to whatever benevolent forces brought him into my life.

Oh! He had his follow-up doctor’s visit yesterday. Good news: he can stop using the crutches unless he’s going to be doing a lot of walking. Bad news: he has to keep the boot on for now. But at least now we can hold hands again, which I have dearly missed.