Moon-lines and Apple-pathways

HAPPY NEW YEAR, EVERYONE!

So, how did you spend your New Year's Eve? Fun? Folly? Asleep before 11:00pm?

I had a very fun night of dancing and cheap champagne, and even found myself a nice boy to kiss at midnight (and several times thereafter...) Terrible dancer, though! :D

My final two entries for pulped_fictions Holly-Day card challenge.

Merry Christmas Flist!


( Ditty and one more card here. )

Friday I finished my Christmas shopping: I ended up buying Smart Wool hiking socks and an Adidas ClimaWarm (or something...) winter hat for my brother. For the FSIL, I bought a very cute Reebok jacket on sale:

( Jacket! )

Also purchased: squishy-warm socks to finish off gifts to the besties, wrapping paper, long-sleeved t-shirt for me, and cleaning products for my aunt's church. (They give them out to families starting over in new housing.) Made it out of the stores and back home just in time to avoid low blood sugar crisis.

Friday night: went out to dinner at Vicente's, a Cuban restaurant in Detroit with my family. Had two (very strong, and VERY tasty) margaritas. I'm not a big mixed drink person (I prefer beer and wine), but I love a good margarita.

For tapas, we ordered goat cheese with tomato sauce, empanadas (chicken and beef), and a dish of shrimp, scallops, calamari, chorizo, and mushrooms in a garlic lemon sauce. They were all fantastic! For dinner, I had roasted pork with mojo de ajo sauce. My mother gave me a diamond and tsavorite garnet ring: green and white, my school colors. (Garnet is also my birthstone.)

Saturday I took my bridesmaid dress in to be altered.

( This is my dress: )

The only alterations necessary were to have the straps shortened. Straps on things are always too long for me...I don't know why.

I also bought shoes to wear with the dress. Erin specified we should wear silver shoes (WHY IT'S A FLOOR LENGTH DRESS WHO CARES WHAT COLOR MY SHOES ARE???), and I don't have any (every other color in the world: YES), so I was a bit annoyed to have to buy some. However, I found a really love pair on clearance at Payless, where I also had a 20% off coupon. HUZZAH, $6.40 shoes!

I spent the afternoon tromping through the snow at the park with my brother's dog.

Saturday night: My friend Fai wanted to take me out to celebrate my graduation. I thought it would just be me and her. Apparently, she had been planning a surprise party since the fall. I was duly SUPRISED, though the shock came slowly, as when we entered the restaurant I caught my friend Lauren coming up the stairs. She said she was sorry to ruin the "big surprise", but my response: "I'M NOT!" Seriously, I'm glad it came in small doses, as I genuinely had not expected anything and didn't know how to react. I was suddenly all quiet and shy for the first 15 minutes (around people I've known MOST OF MY LIFE!) until I ordered a nice, strong margarita to overcome the shock!

Then everyone had me crying at the table over the sweet things they wrote in my cards. People should know, if you're going to say nice things about me: expect tears. LOTS of tears! We had a lovely dinner (Cuban again! What are the odds? But no complaints from me: I had a burrito stuffed with shrimp and Mahi Mahi), and then went back to Fai's for a lovely spread including lots of cheese, fruit, chocolate, and wine.

Sunday: Family Christmas party for my mother's family. The family is HUGE, though three cousins and their respective partners hadn't made it this year. On this side of the family, I have 13 first cousins, and many of the older ones are married with children of their own. Plus my uncle's fiancée's three kids. Plus my cousin's girlfriends two daughters (and they have on daughter together). Plus all the cousins' +1s. Etc. Etc.

( Highlights from the party )

And now I should be off to bed: too much food, too much wine, but many, many good times!

I thought it might be helpful to Google "gift ideas for men". I was wrong.

Here are some of the things various websites suggest I buy for my brother:

A flask shaped like a cell phone. A personalized gallon-sized jug of Tobasco sauce. A toaster that imprints the logo of a sports team onto the toast. "Wacky Bathroom Accessories". THE WORLD'S LARGEST GUMMY WORM. Refrigerator magnets. "The Funny Butt/Face Towel." A $5,000 CAMERA. A set of ninja throwing knives. A 25 gallon aquarium coffee table. POOP SOAP. 28 piece bathroom safety kit. "Instant Irish Accent Breath Spray". World's largest crossword puzzle. Personalized Jager Bomb shotglasses. "The wrist cubby". A pillow remote control. DESK-SIZED GUILLOTINE. A custom bobble-head doll of HIMSELF.


Honestly, I think the most insulting articles are the ones that suggest things like: "the Apple iPad!"

OH YEAH! I TOTALLY did not even think of getting him that!!! And I just happen to have this spare $500.00 I found lying in the street today...

*sigh* Socks are good, right?

So, I threw a minor tantrum in a clothing store today. I think the tantrum itself was justified; it was just staged in front of the wrong audience.

( A tale of retail woe in which I am CRAZY, in PUBLIC, AGAIN! )

I'm pretty sure going back to apologize made me seem even crazier than my temper tantrum did to begin with, but what else is new? Just a side effect of KEEPIN' IT REAL, YO! ;)