Last day with my mama

I love when she comes to visit,

but I hate when she goes away!

Shells aren't selling on the sea shore in OC

First trip to the shore (this summer)
First slice of Mancos pizza (this summer)
First dip in the ocean (this summer)
First fresh, grilled tuna steak dinner (ever?)
???? hair coloring (this year)

Oh, boy!

As if the gift of my mother visiting wasn't enough,
she also surprised me with the complete series of Quantum Leap!
G4 just lost a faithful viewer at 4am.

Saddest day of 2010

Day of the big move. Wilder (my eldest brother), Zoee (my dad's dog), my father, and my mother departed for their long journey to Long Beach, CA. When my father came downstairs early in the morning, I got right up from my make shift bed and went upstairs and got in bed with my mother. I was pretty much crying all morning from that point on. Kind of like I do whenever I hear "Home" by Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes. I cannot hear that song without crying anymore. Anyway, after they left, I hung around the house with my brother, Andrew and his roommate, Don, and tried to pull myself together. Eventually the drugs kicked in and I went to the hefty task of loading my car up with everything that I had acquired from my mother over the weekend due to the move and due to the early Christmas. It was a lot of stuff, as you can see. After I got home, Gizmo and I pretty much just laid on the couch all night. I can honestly say I have no idea what I would do if I didn't have Gizmo in my life. Considering what I was going through when I got him, he's pretty in tune to my emotions and is the sweetest, most comforting little monster when I'm upset. I can't imagine loving anything more than I love him. Well, except maybe my mother.

3000 Miles to Graceland

My parents last full day in Millville. Change is a natural part of life, but it's not always easy to let go of the past. It wasn't easy for me to stand by as my parents prepared to leave the house I grew up in to go to a place 3000 miles away. And though it's nice that the house won't be sold, it was a little unsettling to be there as my parents moved out and my brother and his friend move in. It was kind of surreal. I spent much of the day laying in my parents bed sleeping and hiding from the mayhem downstairs. I got up to go out of the house with my mother a few times and I participated in the early Christmas celebrations that were held at night with my nephew. There were things I just could not participate in like eating or packing. I mostly just hung around quietly and tried not to cry. Didn't always work out, though. Emotions were running high and there was a lot of clashes. Just a really awful day, really. But probably not as bad as the day that followed it.

Despite some people's bad decisions to stain their floor rather than coming to Lindenwold to hang with yours truly, my mother had the good sense to do so. We went to Cherry Hill and had a classic mother-daughter shopping expedition. I used the rest of a gift card on a sweet little coat and clutch. Other than that, we kept our spending to the bare minimum. But only because things just weren't to our high standards. We're extremely snobby and expect the best of the best. Yup.

After we went to the 50's themed Silver Diner across the way to have some dinner. As many 50's themed restaurants, they have little jukeboxes at every table. Supposedly, if you put money in the box and push in your jukebox selection, you get to pick the track. I don't know if I believe this! Is there any proof of this? I know that I've never heard my selections be played so I'm not sure I believe it. I kind of think there's shenanigans going on. I don't know. What do you think?


After dinner we went home and hung up my curtains that had been sitting in my hope chest waiting for action since I moved. Putting up curtains is a serious commitment to a place. Not as much so as painting the walls, but it's still pretty serious. Yeah, things are getting serious.

By the way, I love my mom. xo

Didn't feel much like going back to Lindenwold, so Gizmo and I hung around the house. We ran errands and just basically spent the day with my mom. Lately there's been a lot of buzz going on in the household as my mother has interviewed for jobs in two hospitals in California. As things progress, it's looking more and more like my parents will be moving on California before the end of this year. It's something that my mom has wanted to do for a long time and I'm glad that she's taking the initiative and doing it. She's been saying it so long that people basically have stopped listening so I'm glad that she's going to prove all the nay-sayers wrong. I wouldn't call myself one of those. I've always knew that she would one day do it, but at the same time I was never thrilled with the idea. I liked when it was just an idea. I can avoid reality for only so long. With everyday that passes it's just going to be another day closer to when my mother moves across the country. I'm going to hate it. I'll certainly survive, but I will definitely hate it. And so, I have been spending as much time at home on my break as I could. It's going to be super weird when my mother isn't even in the same time zone as me everyday. I hate dealing with that when she's just on vacation or out of town. It's going to take a lot of adjusting. A lot.

Ocean City, NJ is for aliens

As it inevitably must, summer is slipping, slipping away. I hate when summer ends. I hate when it starts to get colder. I don't completely hate autumn. It is pretty, but it's a bittersweet time. It's the gateway into the cold abyss. Be that as it may, my mother and I took a little trip down to the Ocean City boardwalk. It was a pretty hot day so the climate down by the ocean was perfect. It was an awesome little trip if I do say so myself. I wish I had been able to go to the shore more often this season, but it's life when you're in a college that goes year round. Fare well, summer. I'll miss you. Come back again soon!!

Take some Vitamin B

I got up and out and to school. Yes, on a Sunday. Got my 2d animation final did and done and it felt good. Pictured is some of the somewhat outdated animating equipment that my fine school uses. Anything compatible with VHS and mini DV tapes is officially outdated equipment. Nonetheless, this is where I spent a good deal of my Sunday. It never feels good to go to school when you don't have to be, but it felt good to have that weight off my shoulders. Even if all of my labors landed me with a B. I'm trying not to dwell on it, but I'm clearly failing. So, anyway, after that I drove to my parent's and had some yummy dinner and some quality time with my mother. I wish I could spend more time with my mom. I definitely got spoiled with time when I was living there and the lack of one-on-one time is one of the few, but relevant downfalls of living here. I miss my mama!

Mee Maa Mama!

My mommy came and visited me! ♥

First day in the 'Wold

My first house guest :)

She was a good one! Set the bar high!
We missed her the second she pulled away!