December 30, 2007

This is a tale of positives and negatives. A tale about the good things in my life and the bad.

Friday was a social day for me.

I met up with Allie at BJ's for lunch. We hadn't talked in a while, so it was great getting to see her again. What I love about Allie (and the same goes for Leya) is that we can spend long periods of time without having a conversation and still talk as though we see each other on a daily basis. In other words, we catch up without any awkwardness or having our conversations sound forced or scripted. I find it especially amusing that after all this time we still order the same things when we go to BJ's: for her--- diet coke, mini cheese & tomato pizza sans tomatoes and extra sauce, and order of potato wedges to share; for me-- strawberry lemonade and a mini cheese & tomato pizza.

She's quitting her job and making a career change. Allie has always been one to plan her life years in advance. Besides our disgustingly vast knowledge of all things pop culture and celebrity, being future-centric is one the main things we have in common and that has made us such good friends. I remember us having our two years at Saddleback, our two years at UCLA, and our prospective grad school all planned out long before completing our first year. In fact, I remember having planned out all four years of high school the summer after prior to starting SCHS. Anyways, I was the first to break my life plan by taking a side step and switching gears to journalism; it was a decision that was practically made on a whim, but one I don't regret. Allie stayed with the program longer, but recently decided to throw caution to the wind and enroll in a cosmetology program. I'm glad she chose to do this. She's got the connections and talent to turn this "trade" into a successful career. Moreover, I think it will be beneficial for her in the long run because it's good to learn how to live life as it comes. There was never any doubt in my mind that Allie would end up a success, but I cannot wait to see where this new life Allie has chosen for herself will lead.

After lunch with Allie I stopped by the Boys & Girls Club. It was practically empty, but I did get to see Veronica and a few of the younger staff. Was hoping to say hello to Steve and Ale, but it wasn't meant to be.

I had plans to have dinner with Cindy, Hannah, and Michelle later that night. I got to Cindy's house around 7:30pm. Hannah ended up deciding not to come because she was too tired from a snowboarding trip at Big Bear. That sucked. I was hoping to have a fun night out with my three favorite ex-neighbors. Michelle, Cindy, two of Cindy's friends, and I went to a Cajun place called "The Boiling Crab." The food was awesome and it was great getting to hang out with Cindy and Michelle again. I definitely had some fun times with those girls last year. Too bad our time together was short. I'll have to convince them to come back to Boston for spring break.

Yesterday, however, was not as fun a day. It was my uncle's birthday so we all went over to my grandma's house for the party. Never would have guessed that this family get-together would turn out to be one of the (if not, the) biggest fights our family has ever had. It didn't take long for the anger to start boiling. New Year's was supposed to be held at our house because my parents wanted me to leave California with some good memories; the only fun holiday we've ever had was the time we had New Year's at my house because we know how to throw a fun party. Well, my lovely Aunt Susie decided to take upon herself to organize the party at her house regardless of the fact that we had already reserved that holiday. Right off the bat, I was pissed off because she took one of the few positive things of this trip back home. All through the night I was making snide comments while my mom was making sly, passive aggressive comments regarding that god-awful xmas party. These comments eventually erupted into full-scale arguments. My mom and Aunt Martina got into a heated argument. I got into an argument with one of my uncles. On the other end of the long dining table, my dad started arguing with one of my other uncles. Even my 13-year old cousin started getting involved and making valid arguments. The night ended with my mom stating she is fed up with and could care less about the lot of them and me declaring that I was done with this family.

*sigh* Another wonderful trip back home. This is why I hate the holidays. This is why I hate going home. Such is my family. But like I said, this is the last time I go home for the holidays.
On the plus side, my parents, sis, and I are getting along wonderfully. In fact, we're off to the movies in a bit.

Until next time…

Cheers,

- R