Gift Exchange

Since I'm flying home tonight, Gloria, Matilda and I exchanged our girts last night. They got me some good stuff: a nice pair of brown pants, green sweater, a belt, dress socks that I sorely need and some t-shirts.

I got Matilda one of my favorite books "Where the Sidewalk Ends" and a karaoke game for the PS2 Gloria bought her. She couldn't open the game yet since she doesn't know she's getting the PS2. Actually, she's pretty sure she's getting is but just to be safe we told her she couldn't open the gift until Christmas.

I thought I had done well for Gloria until I got fucked by shipping companies. I bought her a Victoria Secret perfume/body lotion set and a bottle of massage oil from Bath and Body Works. Unfortunately that's all she could open because the other gifts haven't arrived.

I got her a set of earrings she picked out from this speciality catalog she had at home. They were suppose to be here last Friday, Monday at the latest. When I called on Thursday - okay maybe I should have called sooner - the lady told me they were being return to the company because of an incorrect address. Apparently the pinhead who took my order didn't fully put in my address and since they didn't have the right house number, they got shipped back. Fuck! So then they tried to overnight them, but they didn't arrive by the time I left this morning.

The other thing I got her was a single-serve coffee maker that she wanted for her office. I ordered it off Amazon and again they said it would be here early this week. I had a tracking number and it said it was delivered on Dec. 18 but it was no where to be found. I got Matilda's stuff off Amazon and had no problems. I went to the post office for my zip code and they didn't know where it was at.

So then yesterday I checked the order to see if I could figure out anything. When I bought the coffee maker it took me right through the process and didn't show me what address it was sending to. When I looked through again, it showed that it was sent to my old address. I went there this morning to see if they have it, but the office is closed until the 26th. Fuck me, again.

My first Christmas with someone and I royally fuck it up. The earring mishap really couldn't have been avoided. The damn company that I ordered through is like Avon used to be where you had to order from a rep and you couldn't get anything through their website, which is completely stupid in the 21st century. Since I didn't know any reps I just called the company direct and I guess they would have gotten to me had the customer service rep not messed up.

Originally I wasn't going to get her the earrings because I was going to get her a Brighton necklace. Brighton isn't as completely stupid as the people at Silpda in that they sell there stuff at some stores. Unfortunately the two stores in Tallahassee that sell Brighton didn't have the necklace I wanted. The lady at the second store told me she would see if she could get the necklace for me, but never actually told me she ordered it. When I didn't hear from her for a week I assume she couldn't get it so that's when I order the necklace, only to have her call me two days later saying it had come in!

I think the coffee maker is in the office of my old place and I'm planning to get that when I get back into town. As for the earrings, I'm not sure what to do. Unfortunately they won't open until the 26th so I'll have to give them a call and figure out where the hell the earrings are. If they get returned again I think I"m just going to have them sent to her house since I know people will be there. As for the necklace, I'm planning to give that to her for Valentine's Day.

I'll Be Home For Christmas

I'm currently sitting in the AirTran gate of the Jacksonville airport, waiting to begin my journey home. Gloria, Matilda and I had dinner at PF Chang's this afternoon and then they just dropped me off at the airport.

I'm really torn this year about being with Gloria and Matilda on Christmas versus being at home with my family. At first glance it may seem sad that this is my first Christmas with a girlfriend, but if you understood my dating track record you would understand, so its different for me to want to be in two places at once.

Since I got my internship at Fresno State eight years ago, my only holiday routine has been to get on a plane bound for Pittsburgh and spend time with family and friends. It was rather easy actually, no thinking about what I was going to miss where ever I was because all that was back in Fresno, DeKalb or Tallahassee was an empty apartment with half gallon of milk that was going to be expired before I got back.

Thanksgiving of 1998 was the first time I ever missed a major holiday with my family, which isn't that big of a deal considering I was only a year removed from college. Since then I think I've only been home for one Thanksgiving, but it's gotten easier each year to be not be home. Sure I miss not laying around my parent's house all day Thanksgiving then heading out to the bar that night to meet up with fellow over-stuffed friends. Then the next day we always played a game of football that evolved with age from full-blown contact to two-hand touch.

Given my job, there is almost always an athletic event, usually football and basketball, sandwiched around Thanksgiving so it's tough to get back. What has made it easier the last three years is that my parents have driven - yes driven, dad's not a big flier - from Pennsylvania for Thanksgiving. We go to the volleyball coach's house where there is anywhere from 15-30 people so it's very festive. I think my mom likes it too because she doesn't have to do much cooking anymore. But Christmas is different.

Unless there is a bowl game of some sort or you work in professional sports, the three-day span before and after Christmas is pretty much a dead period for athletics so going home is only natural. Originally the plan was for me to come up today and then Gloria and Matilda would fly up on the 26th, but because of financial reasons we couldn't do it. Next year - and I know looking ahead a year might be premature - they tentative plan is for all three of us to fly up on Christmas day into Ohio where we always go to my uncle's. It will just be easier for all of Matilda's presents to be in one location so Gloria and I don't have to lug them through the airport.

I'm not sure how my parents will take it. At some point they had to know there was going to be a day where my sister and I are not there on Christmas morning. Right now my sister and her husband come in Christmas Eve for dinner and midnight church service, then we open present Christmas morning. Then my mom, dad and I head to Ohio and my sister goes to her in-laws. Hopefully if I'm not there Christmas morning my sister and her husband will still come up so there be someone there. Who knows.

Most married/dating couples that I know alternate holiday's where they got to one place for Thanksgiving and another for Christmas then the following year they switch it up. Unfortunately that really doesn't work for Glorida and I. Given our jobs, traveling for Thanksgiving is nearly impossible so that only leaves Christmas. Since her parents live with her it's only my parents that are going to get slighted by the plan for next year.

Maybe two years from now we would open presents at her house on the 23rd or 24th and then fly up to PA? The other thought I had was my parents fly down a day or two early for Christmas and then all five of us fly up to Ohio on the 25th to go to my uncle's. Then there's the issue of them coming to Florida twice in less than a month and again my dad's not a big flier.

Ugh.

I guess I should just be happy that I've got someone in my life that I care enough about that I'm willing to give up Christmas morning with my parents. There are thousands, if not millions, of people who won't be with the one's they love whether they are not in town, at war, in the hospital, etc.

I doubt I'll post until well after Christmas so to all of my five faithful readers, Merry Christmas, Happy Hanakuh, etc. and a Happy New Year.

Toofache

Running off at the keyoard...

...So I had my root canal last week. It was a much easier process than I could have ever imagined. Just wish it didn't set me back $596. No pain, at least during the process, and they even let me listen to my iPod, which made it much more tolerable. Now I have to wait at least a month while they see how my tooth reacts and then they will make the crown. It looks like it's going to be February before my mouth is whole again...

...I've done the majority of my shopping already and most of it has been from the comforts of my office as I got almost everything online. I got a game and book for Matilda as well as a coffee maker for Gloria. Relax that's not all I'm getting her. I ordered a pair of earrings from a catalog and I was going to get her this necklace, but the retailer doesn't let you buy online, don't ask me why, and the two stores in town that sell that line can't find it. I think I'm going to get her a Victoria Secret gift set and save the necklace for Valentine's Day. And yes I'm already looking ahead to VD by taking a cue from the John Mayer song "St. Patrick's Day". Once you get to Christmas you're pretty much locked into a relationship until mid-March. Not that I'm looking to get out, but you know....

...Right now is one of those times where I love to live in Florida. This whole weekend and into this week it's going to be in the 70's and sunny. If I wasn't working I'd be wearing shorts and they may appear as the week goes on. Thursday I'm going to play golf. That's not happening up north right now without some serious bundling up...

...As much as I like the weather right here now, I'm actually hoping that there is snow on the ground when I get back to Pennsylvania but it doesn't look like that's going to happen. The highs are in the 40's with the lows not going below freezing. If I have to go up to the cold, especially for Christmas, I want there to be snow on the ground, it just makes it more festive...

...I'm glad I don't bet on the NFL because this year I would be losing my shirt. I'm in one of those pick'em leagues were you pick the winner of all the games and I'm just brutal this year, but the whole league is like that. Every week there are 4-5 "upsets" and very few teams are covering the spreads this year. It's frustrating and I've pretty much given up on this year....

....I've never like Tom Brady, but now I like him even less. First off I just don't like him because he always beats the Steelers. Even his injuries led to a Steelers' loss. I contend that if he hadn't gotten hurt in the '03 AFC championship game that the Steelers would have won. They were beating him up and he was ineffective, but when he got hurt and Drew Bledsoe came in it gave the Pats new blood. Now i hate him because he screwed my fantasy football team.

After starting 0-7, I won four of my last six games and got into the playoffs. Even though I was facing the No. 1 seed my team was playing well. Brady, who was averaging about 13 points a game, lays an egg against Miami and scores zero points. I lost to the top seed by three points. If this pretty-boy jagoff has an average game, or hell slightly below average game, I win and move on in the playoffs. But no, this bitch couldn't throw one lousy TD pass against a horrible Dolphins team.

Meeting The Friends

Since Gloria and I worked together our circle of friends in town isn't that big to the point where we're meeting new people. We tried to keep the relationship on the down low during the fall but by now it's pretty common knowledge. There really hasn't been a chance for us to do anything within the department setting as a couple, but that may change at the office Christmas party. That could be interesting, especially since she has some hang up about it.

The two of us have also lived all over the country so we've got pockets of friends all over the place. I meet two of her friends early in the fall then she went through the ringer at the end of October. First she met my friend Nikki in Boston then my parents in Maryland as well as my friend Merseydotes and Kristen for dinner. When we went to Duke and Wake I got to meet three of her neighbors from when she lived up that way, but it was only a brief meeting after the match.

This week I got to meet on of Gloria's best friends, Martha and her family. Martha's got three kids, ages four, six and eight. Friday was Matilda's seventh birthday and every year she takes her to Disney so Tuesday we headed down and Martha and her family came up from south Florida.

The first night we went to Mickey's Magical Christmas where you buy a special ticket and they keep the Magic Kingdom open until 12 a.m. with special shows, fireworks, cookies & hot chocolate all over the park. It's a pretty good deal because you barely have to wait on any of the rides and get all the perks for an even cheaper cost.

On Wednesday we went to Animal Kingdom, which I hadn't been to and then MGM. Animal Kingdom is pretty cool - it's got a great roller coaster Expedition Everest - and a good safari ride where you see also sorts of animals. They don't mention anything about security but there didn't appear to be any sort of fences separating you from such animals as lions, cheetas, elephants. I mean if something flip in one those things and they just went on a rampage, what's to stop them?

Not that any park at Disney sucks, but MGM is pretty solid. They got two good rides - Rockin Rollercoaster & Tower of Terror - then some other cool stuff like the back lot tour and a special effects show. Since we spent most of the day at Animal Kingdom we didn't get to spend much time at MGM, but enough to get our money's worth and for the kids to get on the rides they wanted to. The day wasn't cheap by any stretch of the imagination, $80 for a one-day park hooper ticket, and that's with my discount as a Florida resident.

Getting back to the point, I was glad that Gloria asked me to come along on the trip and to meet her friends. I thought it was important for relationship. By meeting each other friends you get to learn more about the other person and you're sharing a part of your life. I'm not the best at sharing and expressing my feelings to Gloria, I'm getting better, but I think meeting my friends is another way to share with her.

She may get another chance to meet my friends if we go to Mobile to see Ohio play in the GMAC Bowl, but that trip is still up in the air. I'm also hoping that we can come up to Pennsylvania this summer.

Okay it's time to fold some laundry, I'll have more later.

Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving was pretty good. The day didn't start so well as I had to get up at 4:30 a.m. to fly back to town from North Carolina with the volleyball team. We played at Duke and Wake Forest Tuesday and Wednesday then came home that morning. Needless to say all of us were tired and had it been any other day I would have come back to the house and just slept, but Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday.

My parents were already in town and waiting for me. They had driven all the way down from Pennsylvania - my dad doesn't fly - and they were just as tired as me. They stopped stopped somewhere in Georgia to take a nap but that was about it.

After taking a shower and unpacking slightly, we caught a quick breakfast and headed up to the volleyball coaches house. I've gone to his house the last four years and my parents have been down the last three years. Last year it was a huge thanksgiving with our vb team as well as wake forest. This year was pretty good, but not as big as last year. His whole side of the family drove down from Ohio in an RV, which had to have been an interesting trip.

Dinner was also going to be a little bit different because Gloria's whole family was going to be there and this would be the first time our parents would meet. I can count on one hand the number of girlfriends I have, I know sad, and Gloria is in even more exclusive company as the only girlfriend I've ever introduced to my parents so needless to say the meeting of the parents was completely new territory for me.

Luckily our families got a long pretty well, it didn't seem like anything was forced between us like we were just sitting there because we felt like we had to. My parents, especially my mom, seem to really like Matilda as well. I'm sure just likes to think about the potential of a grandchild, but let's not get a hold of ourselves.

As for the meal itself it was great. I love thanksgiving because there are really no expectations. Everything centers around food - which I obviously love given my spare tire - and football, which I also like. Because of all the activity in the house, and because the games weren't that good, I didn't watch a whole lot of football but we did manage to get a game going in the backyard. Despite being in the boot I got to play as the all-time quarterback. The food was great, we deep fried two turkeys and there were all the usually side dishes like cheesy potatoes, green bean casserole, etc.

The rest of the weekend went pretty well. Friday morning my parents and I played a par three course, which was about all the golf I could play in the boot, and then I worked a women's basketball game that was on TV. After the game my parents and I went out to Gloria's for dinner with her parents. Again everything seem to go really well, good food, good conversation, etc. I think both sets of parents are pretty easy going so that makes it easier for everyone to get along.

Saturday was the FSU-UF football game, which didn't have the big game feel it should since we sucked this year, then out to the football coaches house for son's birthday party. The party was fun, but with a noon start to the football game it was a long day for everyone and we headed back to my house early.

The house was a little crazy because on top of my parents, my other roommate's parents were there as well as a friend of his dad and one of his buddies and a friend of my other roommate. I had to sleep on the couch downstairs which was a pain in the ass because the guys kept coming in after 2 a.m. from the bars and I was trying to sleep. In theory it would have been best for my folks to stay at at hotel, but I was trying to save them some money and between the short trip and all the work I had, I wouldn't have seen them that much if they didn't stay with me.

Sunday we had breakfast with Matilda and Gloria then my parents started back for PA. After that I helped Gloria with the Christmas lights, which took a long time and we didn't get a whole lot accomplished. Because of our schedules it took us three days to do everything, but they are up and look nice.

More to come.

More Catching Up

This blog, like my life, seems to go in this cycle. I let every thing go for a week or two then catch up on everything in one fell swoop. Instead of maintaining this blog, and my life, at small increments at a time every day or every other day, I fall behind and then when things get to a breaking point, I address them.

Take laundry for instance. Right now my fourth load of laundry is in the dryer. I started last night and I am now finishing up this evening. I've got time because Gloria and her daughter are out of town at a volleyball match.

Last week it was my car that I finally cleaned after who knows how many months. The rugs were dirty, it started to smell a little bit, and there was just junk every where in it so I cleaned it. The carpets still need to be cleaned in it, but it's about 1000 times better than it was at this point.

Since I'm at home alone watching bad TV and don't want to work on my softball guide I've got some time to catch you up.

Catching Up

It's been a while since my last post, so I wanted to do some quick catching up:

The boot is off, though I've transitioned to a brace for the next few weeks

My folks met Gloria, her daughter Matilda and her parents over thanksgiving. It well well.

I returned to the site of my first trip as an SID. Nothing sentimential, just had been eight years.

I'll type more tomorrow. I'm off to Gloria's house to help finish putting up Christmas lights.

MS

The Root of All Evil

So I've got my appointment to see the dentist about a root canal. I get to go on December 13, which if you're scoring at home, or by yourself, is four weeks away. How is it possible that it's going to take me for weeks to get a root canal? It's not an elective surgery, I need to get my tooth fixed! Then a month after I get the root canal, i can get my crown replace so it will be well in 2007 before my mouth is back in place.

The only positive from having to wait so long is that I'll have time to save up the money I don't have to pay for the damn thing. In case you were wondering, after insurance it's going to cost me $596.25 to get a root canal. The crown will probably be another $300. Good times.

I think I've come up with a stop-gap to my financial woes. This isn't the best idea, but it's about the only one I've got. During my time at NIU, I accumulated about 8 grand in a retirement fund and it's just sitting there. I'm sure I'm going to get a good portion of that taken away in taxes, but if I get half of that, I can pay for my teeth, pay off the overdue portion of my credit cards and put the rest of it away in a saving account towards the down payment on a house. Like I said, it's not ideal, but it's a way for me to pull myself up by my own bootstraps. Like i said yesterday, I really, really, really don't want to ask my parents for more money.

On to another subject...I finally got my ass working out again as I went swimming on monday. I was slated to go today, but lightening in the area closed the pool. I contemplating going to lift, upper body only since I've got the boot, but I'm pretty tired. Gloria is coming down with the flu and/or strep throat so I stayed with her last night and got very little sleep, probably 45 minutes or so at a time, which is nothing compared to what she is going through.

Fortunately I don't' get sick that often. You can probably count on one hand the number of days of school I missed because i was sick. That's high school of course, we won't got into how many times I missed an afternoon calculus class because the allure of golfing or hanging out with friends.

and keeps pouring

Some I got into the dentist today. After nearly two hours of sitting around he comes in and tells me I need to have a root canal done where my crown fell out. Once they do that they'll rebuild the base of my tooth so they can put the crown back in. Even better news is that there is a short of dentist in town who do root canals so it may be a month before I get this done.

Ugh.

The upside is I don't have to pay for it right away, which is good because i don't have the cash for it. The more and more I think about my finances the more it just turns my stomach into knots and gives me a huge headache. I missed a car payment last month and I can catch up on that in my next pay check, but then I don't have the money to pay off my student loan. Add to this that I owe Gloria $225 because she was nice of enough to let me put my plane ticket on her credit card so I could go home for Christmas.

Then on top of all this my parents know about my financial woes because they co-sign my car lease because my credit sucks so when I missed the payment on my car they got a notice. They've always been there to bail me out financially and I feel so guilty borrowing more money from them. I feel like such a failure. Anyone know how much a kidney goes for these days on the black market?

When it rains, it pours

So I've been getting around the last three weeks with the boot on my left foot. It's not the most enjoyable thing, it's not the most comfortable thing, but at least all my left foot shoes are getting a much deserved break. It's a pain in the ass, but I'm managing and it's better than the alternative of a cast. Plus my leg is feeling much better and most of the swelling has finally gone down.

My financial situation is still in disarray and is the biggest stress on my life. I feel like I'm never going to catch up on all my bills. It always seems like a student loan is popping up here or some forgotten bill over there and they are never at the right time for me to keep a positive balance. I've enrolled in credit counseling and if every goes to plan I should have my credit cards paid off in five years, compared to the 20 years it was going to take me by just paying the minimums.

Another reason why my finances stress me is that I can't do much for Gloria. I like to do nice things for her like buy her flowers on a whim or pick up lunch every now and then, but given my financial status, that doesn't happen very often. She makes more money than I do, which I'm fine with - I've always said I'd be Mr. Mom if I could find a sugar momma - and she does a lot for me, but the fact that I can't reciprocate just kills me. I don't even want to think about Christmas.
I swear I'm so desperate in my finances that I'm this close - envision my thumb and forefinger about a millimeter apart - to answering one of those online ads where you get paid to answer surveys and junk like that. I already do one where I earn points towards frequent flyer miles, which I've actually gotten. I'm also entertaining the idea of a second job, but god knows I don't have the time for that. Actually god knows a lot of things, including that, but probably doesn't rate that as high on his list as I do. Even with all those problems, I think there is light at the end of the tunnel. I hope to be getting a raise sometime this year or next and I'm picking up some cash on the side doing work for televised basketball games, but for the time being it's not good.

Before you start the pity party or sponsor a tele-a-thon, though I'll take any donations, things haven't been all that bad. The job is going well, my relationship with Gloria is going great, though she's been a little cranky lately, and in general, everything else is fine.

But, and what for the dramatic pause....the friggin crown on my tooth falls out Friday night! I got it put on about 6-7 years ago in DeKalb and it bothered me a few years ago so I saw a team dentist and the x-rays were negative. I've had a few check ups since then, but really no pain since I was brush and flossing (occasionally), but Friday morning my tooth was a little sore, but I didn't think much of it. That evening I've got the slim remains of a Tootsie pop and when I bite down on it, my crown comes off.

Fortunately it's a pretty clean break, there wasn't any pain. I'm also fortunately in that none of the nerve endings have been exposed so there's really not that much pain in my mouth. However, I do need to find a dentist - i hadn't set one up yet with my new insurance - and I need to get this damn crown replaced. Of course this also means I'm going to have to fork out $300 after insurance for the new crown and this is money I don't have in the first place. All of this just adds to my stress and I don't know what I'm going to do so if you see me on the street corner, throw me a buck.