this side of the blue

MASSACHUSETTS

Thursday - we left the house around 5:30; got to the airport a little before 6. Bruce dropped Mom and me off. there was a slight hicupp at check-in due to some flight schedule changes, but nothing a bit of griping didn't fix. actually it made it better. we managed to get on the same flight to Atlanta, and get on the standby list which got us to Rhode Island roughly around noon, 3 hours before schedule. we played cards on the plane, and i only felt slightly nauseous. Shannon picked us up in Providence, and we drove to Kelly Maranda's house. visited with her and Cathy for a bit, they rolled a joint, then we had some lunch [i had a clam chowder bread bowl and some absolutely delicious onion rings]. took a few pics, then went on our merry way. drove to Auntie Sharlene's, greeted Missy, Auntie, Uncle Tim, and Matt. drove to Wrights for dinner. ate only a bit of chicken [unfortunately i was way too full to eat much]. talked about MJ's death a bit; perused the gift shop, but only came out with a little notepad, an eco friendly storage bag, and some key toppers. drove to Auntie Sharons trailer, greeted her and Uncle Kevin. stayed for a bit.

Friday - woke up around 9:30ish. got showered and dressed, went to breakfast at Crackerbarrel's with Shannon, Mom, and the Kiely's. had a veggie skillet and a blueberry muffin. drove around with Shannon and Mom and spent the day sight seeing. visited Hayward Landing, drove past Mimere and Pepe's, visited great grandparents and "the little fisherman's" graves; stopped by the hair salon Auntie Denise works at to say hello. visited the old farmhouse; the Ebels; drove through Douglas, and the village in Northbridge. met up with Matt and Missy for dinner at Brian's. had pasta primavera [it was HUGE]. Shannon and Missy had a lobster. drove to Auntie Sharon's trailer for karaoke. sang with Mom "I'll Fly Away", sang "White Trash Wedding" by the Dixie Chicks with Jenny, sang RESPECT with Auntie, sang "Goodbye Earl" by myself. had a weak screw driver. drove back to Auntie's, sat on the couch with Missy, Jenn, and Matt and talked. went out for late night donuts. went to bed around midnight.

Saturday - woke up around 10am. had a donut for breakfast. showered, dressed, waited around for Shannon to get ready, then Shannon and i drove and picked up Jackie and Vickie. hugs ensued. drove to the theater to see "The Hangover." i bought some nachos and bottled water. watched "The Hangover". it sucked, i was the only one who thought so. after the movie, we drove to Papa Ginos. ordered two large cheese pizza's to split. drove by a strip club called Sweaty Betty's. Uncle Roland met up with us. drove back to Uncle Rollies, Shannon smoked, then we all took pictures. left Uncle Rolands, and it was pissing rain. struggled to get in the car without getting drenched. dropped the girls off back at their house, then Shannon and i drove back to Aunties. got soaked on the way in. visited with the Kiely's. was going to have a bonfire but the rain spoiled it. instead watched TV in the living room, then Missy, Shannon, Matt, and i sat and talked. devised a plan for the following day. went to bed upstairs with Shannon. put on Scary Movie 2 til i fell asleep.

Sunday - woken up by Shannon around 8. took a prompt shower, dressed in my dressy pants and a purple shirt. after everyone was ready, followed Matt to Sudberry, MA to the Wayside Inn. got there a little after 11am. greeted Mimere and Gramps, who were totally shocked to see us, as well as the rest of the family. hugged Dan, Ben, Dan's girlfriend, Kayla, Nick, Erika, Auntie Sheryl. took all the professional family pictures. lots and lots of them. everyone looked spiffy. went inside around noon for anniversary dinner. sat with Shannon, Matt, Missy, Jenn, and Phil. had clam chowder, a biscuit, turkey, and a strawberry thing for dessert. was pretty delish. had a couple mamosa's or whatever they're called. [orange juice and champagne]. left before 2; drove back to Auntie's for the afterparty. got stinking drunk on vodka and cranberry juice. FUN. ate a shitload: meatballs, baked ziti, and a shit load of cookies. spilled ziti and Mom's meatballs all over my jeans in a drunken mess. rolled my eyes as Mimere announced she was going to get "SHIT FACED." got annoyed when Uncle Kevin told Auntie "all the kids are getting drunk" and was given a talking-two. visited with my cousins most of the day. watched Mim get teared up looking at her scrap book. people started leaving around 9. sat around with my cousins for a bit longer, then went to bed around 10. so tired.

Monday - woke up around 11. showered and dressed, then Shannon and i drove down to Auntie Sheryl's for lunch with Mim, Gramps, Mom, Bruce, Dan, Ben, and Ashley. had Harry's pizza for lunch YUM. only had a slice or 2, wasn't overly hungry. hung around with them til about 3. watched Auntie Sheryl's dog have a seizure. scary stuff. hugged everyone goodbye, then drove back to Auntie Sharlene's for a couple hours. laid around for a bit, started packing all my shit, then Shannon and i drove to Debbie's with the aid of a GPS. got there around 5pm. hugged the shit out of Deb and Brian. sat on their deck, had some nachos, then an Italian sausage and some steak tips for dinner. stayed and visited only for a couple hours; took pictures. left around 8pm. had to be up at 3am to catch a plane.

Tuesday - woke up around 2:30. showered, then woke Shannon. dressed, finished last minute packing, left the house a little after 4am. drove to Providence airport in record time. said bye to Shannon, had a helluva stressful time managing to get to my plane on time. almost didn't make it. by the time i got to the terminal the plane had already left the gate, and had to sprint across the runway. from then on had an uneventful, stress-free flight back to Daytona. got back to my home a little after noon. unpacked; did laundry, comforted the dog, had some pizza, slept on and off.

TODAY - worked til 5. went to class at 6; first History class. a little boring, but easy. discovered i have to write a history paper on anything i want from 1865-present. got home a couple hours ago. been cleaning and comforting Simon further.

soup time!