Missing You

I just spent an entire weekend with someone, have now been away from him for only three hours, and I still miss him like crazy! Isn't that just ridiculous?

Today, on the way home from my boyfriend's hometown, I realized how completely and rather hopelessly happy I am with him... And it scared the crap out of me. Because I am so afraid of finally finding someone, who could actually be the one, and not having enough time to be with him...

I mean just to think about how many people in the world have lost their special someone too soon, before they could grow old together or live their happily ever after... And to think that that could very easily happen to me, that I could very easily be the next person in the world to lose my special someone, before I get a chance to grow old with him or live happily ever after with him...

I mean just think of the situation that those people are in, constantly listening to people tell them that the deceased person that they loved would just want them to be happy... And they, the living, continually telling themselves that it is better to have loved and lost than to have never loved at all... And just thinking about how all of that is complete and utter bullshit, and that all you really want to do is just lay in bed and cry all day and night until the earth is flooded with your tears and anguish.

And it just makes me want to take all the people I love and put them into a bubble to protect them from anything and everything evil. It makes me want to just be with these people all day and every day, because there could be a time when I can't be with them at all. It makes me want to run towards my boyfriend, jumping head first into his arms, where I can stay for all eternity. I mean what is the point of going through all the formalities of life, if you aren't with the people you love and who love you? If you can't be with them? If they are taken from you?

And while Tennyson is right ("Tis better to have loved and lost, than never to have loved at all), I still think that losing the one you love, your other half, would be simply unbearable. With my heart shattering into a thousand pieces, I can honestly say, that I don't know if I'd ever be able to stand again. So I now quote Otomo No Yakamochi: "Better never to have met you in my dream than to wake and reach for hands that are not there."

Meeting the Parents

This weekend I went home with my boyfriend to meet his parents and the rest of his family.

Now, there are a lot of things one could say about this semi-awkward situation, but there is one thing that I really dislike! And I don't dislike it because I am nervous or because I think the family won't like me or approve of me... It's simply because usually the only person we have in common is my boyfriend.

So everything starts out pleasant while they ask you questions about yourself.

"So where are you from?"

"What sorority are you in?"

"When did you and him meet?"

But then the conversation turns, and they start to talk about other people. But the reality is that if they start to talk about anyone else besides your boyfriend, the one person you have in common, you really have nothing to contribute to the conversation anymore. So you sit and listen...

"Do you remember Bill and Frank?"

"Or Uncle Charlie and Aunt Jill?"

"Or that really tall girl from school?" They continue on.

"So and so got arrested and so and so graduated from college."

"Melanie got into med school, and Adam moved to Florida."

"And surely you remember the kid from around the corner..."

And I think to myself as I sit quietly: No, I don't know the kid from around the corner... and no I haven't met the really tall girl from school, although I am sure she is pretty darn tall. But too bad for the guy who got arrested, and Adam is way smarter than us all for getting out of this Arctic weather and moving to the beach.

I mean I'm not from this area! I don't know these people! So I simply sit there, listening but bored out of my mind. And the worst of it is that it makes me feel shy and quiet, when really I just have absolutely no idea who the heck they are talking about. It really just sucks!

I mean... What happened to talking about me? I like being the center of the attention! Could we please go back to that?

The Annoyances with Flying

Flying... Don't you just hate it!

Let's just say that our trip to Vegas didn't exactly start out as planned. The morning started with me pulling my butt out of bed at 3:00AM in order to meet my parents by 4:00AM so we could get to the airport. We got through security and everything just fine, but our plane (which had been sitting there all night) was running low on oxygen, and they had to get a mechanic to fix it. Well... the mechanic was thirty minutes away, but we were assured by the airport attendant that it would be a quick fix once he got there. My family and I weren't too worried, because we had a two hour layover in Denver. So instead of waiting there, we would wait here in the airport. No biggie. However there was another family (who I think was going some place tropical) who was furious! There was yelling from both the family and the airport attendant who was in charge of our flight. It was not pretty! I missed a little of the action, because I had popped a Dramamine and was out, but I heard from my family that it was some pretty great stuff!

Finally, the mechanic got there. And it took him longer than "a quick fix" to fix our plane. Grant it, we didn't want to run out of oxygen mid-flight, but couldn't they have checked this out at 3:00AM when I was getting up so I wouldn't be late for the flight. If we are required to be early, they should have to be too. And don't you think a mechanic should be on staff at all times when the airport is open. I mean really. Eventually, we loaded and took off and landed in Denver, just as our connecting flight was leaving. Excuse me, but when does a flight ever leave from Denver on time!? Anyone ever experience it?

So now it was my family's time to get a little rowdy! Our options: Option 1: We had a small chance to make a flight at one o'clock, but it was completely booked, so we had to hope that connecting flights didn't make it in on time or people didn't show up. Unfortunately, we had six people, and there was probably not a very good chance that six people would not show up to claim their seats. Option 2: We could catch a flight that didn't leave until 8pm that night from Denver. Or option 3: There was room on a flight to Los Angeles, in which we could then jump on a flight leaving from there to Las Vegas and be in Vegas by 8pm. I remind you that all of these options were completely ridiculous, considering we were supposed to be in Las Vegas already!

We tried to get on the one o'clock flight and didn't. Go figure. So needless to say, I visited Los Angeles for the first time in my life, but never left the airport. And we didn't get into Las Vegas until 8:30PM. Which means I was up and pretty much in an airport or on a plane for 17 hours straight!! AND late for some Vegas fun I might add!

Well we tried to look on the bright side. Maybe the flight we were supposed to be on was going down and this was God's way of saving us. Or maybe this bad experience would save us from a future plane crash, because we will probably never fly UNITED again!

That could be the case... who knows really... but my sister's boyfriend's mother was a little upset when she was told, and she is now trying to get us all free flights. Gotta love them moms!

P.S. We flew American on the way home. And had absolutely no problems! Left Vegas at 7:30AM, connected in Dallas, and arrived in Des Moines by two o'clock. That's with the time differences. So fly American!

The Gift

Since I did not blog while I was in Vegas, I have to tell you about the gift my dad gave me right before we left. He gave me a bag and said:

"What would you like more than anything?"

I said, "A job."

He said, "Besides that..."

"A car?" I wasn't sure exactly what I was supposed to say.

"Just open it!" he said finally.

So I did.

And my dad (what a great dad) had gotten me this little Packer helmet that which was signed by the one and only BRETT FAVRE. And it's not just any old signature. It is actually written out to me. I mean it has my name on it. Which means that Favre actually knows my name. His hand wrote it. Which means he knows I exist in this world. Which means that he now knows that somewhere in Iowa there is a girl who loves him. And would gladly marry him if everything didn't work out with his wife!

Haha! And the funny thing is he actually signed a Green Bay Packer helmet, even as a current Viking. I love it! Favre is just amazing like that!

But it turns out my dad was talking to an insurance guy who knows Favre, because he used to play for the NFL and his dad used to play for the NFL... Something like that. And my dad didn't even buy insurance from him. So thanks to the insurance guy (what a great insurance guy) who helped my dad get me Favre's signature. That was really awesome of you!

And THANKS finally to my dad! You'll always be the best man in my life! And this is one of the best gifts I've ever gotten!

The Numbers of Vegas

So I got home from Vegas yesterday, and I had a blast. (More details to come!) But I am still so glad to be back on a schedule. Yes, I am one of those people who actually like a schedule. But while in Vegas, I had many questions involving numbers. I don't have a lot of the answers to share with you, but I am sure they would be very interesting to know. Below are a few of my questions:

How many taxis are registered in the city of Las Vegas?

How many wedding chapels are in Vegas?

How many pounds of food are wasted each day at the Mandalay Bay Buffet?

What are your odds of winning the Monopoly slot machine game?

What is the average time most people go to bed on a Vegas weekend?

How many free drinks does the average cocktail waitress hand out per shift? How much money does that cost the hotel/casino?

How many people actually leave Vegas a winner?

How many people throw up on the New York New York Rollercoaster?

How many Eiffel Tower margaritas are sold each day?

How many floors are there in the Luxor Pyramid?

While I am sure there are many more numbers of Las Vegas, these were just the few I thought about on the trip. If you know any of the answers, send them my way!

SIN CITY HERE I COME

Tomorrow at 6:25 AM I, along with my family, will be boarding a plane and leaving for the great and wonderful Las Vegas. I am totally stoked!

Like I mentioned in an earlier post, my sister turned 21 on Valentine's Day. Everyone else in my family has been to Vegas except her, so we decided about a year ago to make this trip after she was officially of age. Well the time has come... and I simply can't wait!

Many times I get so excited about a place or attraction, because it is advertised so amazingly and then I get there and am disappointed. That didn't happen when I went to Vegas the first time. It definitely lives up to all its hype! I mean my mouth literally fell open in awe!

There is just so much to see and do. You can gamble and drink and see shows. Heck you could spend a full two days just in one casino! The buffets are excellent, the restaurants amazing, and the architecture of each casino is so unique. There are the rides on the Stratosphere and the water show at the Bellagio and the Pirate show at Treasure Island and the roller coaster at New York, New York. Inside the Venetian you feel like you are outside, because the ceiling is painted like clouds, and every so often it starts to rain. Mandalay Bay has the biggest buffet I've ever seen, and underneath the Eiffel Tower you can buy the largest margaritas in the world! Of course all this is on the new strip, but the old strip is equally fun and exciting! If you just happen to win there, your money comes out old style in quarters. Can you imagine even fifty bucks in quarters?

Last time we went, we stayed at the Mirage, which was entirely elegant and perfect. This year we decided to go a little bit cheaper and stay at the Excalibur. So if I don't get a chance to blog in the next five days, it's because I am off having some fun in Sin City. But I promise to tell you all about it when I return.

P.S. This is definitely the time to be jealous!

Last Minute Valentines

Just two minutes ago I went to my mailbox to check my mail, thinking I would not have anything. But to my surprise, there were three Valentine's waiting for me. Two were store bought Valentine's but sweet none the less. And the third was a card from my parents. It was one of the sweetest cards I've ever read, let alone have ever received. I cried. It said:

(Outside cover)

A daughter leaves your home
but never your heart.

She discovers her own happiness
which, in turn, becomes yours.

(Inside)
Life changes.
Love does not.

Happy Valentine's Day!
Love You Always!
Mom & Dad

If that's not perfect, I don't know what is. Thanks Mom & Dad! I love you too! (And the twenty bucks!)