Somebody loves me!
8:18 p.m.
We arrived a half hour later at my mom�s than was strictly speaking necessary, as we somehow overshot our exit and found ourselves past the airport before we could turn around to go back. That was weird. We must have been either extremely tired, or distracted by conversation, as we�ve never done that before. Anyway, my mom was still up, this being around midnight, and it was difficult to get away from her and go to bed. That�s another thing I dread.
All three nights I slept very poorly. The bed at my mom�s is extremely uncomfortable, and the floor in the room we used was none too clean as her cleaning lady hadn�t vacuumed it in a while. Something as well in her house makes me sneeze. The bed at my parents-in-law�s is also uncomfortable, as it is an opened up daybed, and my half slants inward. I don�t think it�s supposed to do that, but it does, and I can never really get a good night�s sleep on it. All three nights I woke several times, got up to pee, and had a hard time getting back to sleep.
Thanksgiving dinner over at my brother-in-law�s was a feast. We were unable to contribute food-wise, so we were charged with bringing the wine, two bottles each of red and white. There was turkey and stuffing, salmon for the non-turkey eaters and turkeyless stuffing, mashed potatoes, cooked carrots with rosemary, brussels sprouts, steamed broccoli, pumpkin and apple pies. A feast. Veritably.
After dinner, Buddy Boy beat me at a game of pool, just barely, mind you, and Hubby and I played a few blues tunes, my brother-in-law spontaneously joining in on his bass. Hubby had picked up a classical guitar earlier that afternoon from the guy he bought his own instrument from, but this was for a student of his, so he was using it to practise on.
So much drama in that family. My niece, 25, just doesn�t seem to have much luck with men. So many of her relationships have just been so wrong. This most recent one seemed so right--they were even shopping for engagement rings. He got along great with her family, especially her dad, and it seemed so perfect. Then we hear they�ve broken up, and it seems that he was stepping out on her, which is really bizarre, when you think about it. She�s gorgeous, sexy, totally devoted to her man, and I can�t imagine why any guy would cheat on a girl like that. But my sister-in-law�s own sister�s marriage (the second one for both of them) is on the rocks because her husband, who is my age, has a 25-year-old girlfriend. I just don�t get it.
Anyway, we spent Sunday with my mom, took her out to dinner, which was kind of fun. That afternoon Little Princess and I took her to the neighbourhood plaza which I remember from my youth so I could buy hannukah candles (it�s impossible to find them around here, so I decided to stock up early). The stores there were never terribly high class, but it has turned into a real schlock retail area, full of discount stores: there�s a dollar store, and even a pawnshop. The bakery is gone, the jeweller is no more. I wasn�t impressed.
We drove back today, having good weather (both trips, actually) and no mishaps. We stopped at the service centre before Kingston and decided to continue on to the next one as there were mega lineups for both the washroom and the food. That was where we got slowed down for construction, and Little Princess and I really needed to use the toilet. Our house was exactly as we had left it, and I think it�ll be an early night. I�m looking forward to laying my head on my own pillow for a change.
However, I must relate this before I hit the done! button: Before leaving this morning, Hubby and I played a couple of jazz tunes for my mom: All of Me and Georgia on my Mind. She thought we were marvelous, and she said of me that I sounded better than any of the other singers around. This is significant because my mom never praises me. If anything, she finds fault where none exists because she just can�t bring herself to say nice things about me. It�s not that she doesn�t say them to other people, she just can�t say them to me. So this was truly a remarkable thing. All my life I have been looking for approval from my mother, and today, when I�m almost 50 years old, she finally grants it.
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