2009-06-03 - 4:49 p.m.
My spell checker is sexist

I am typing very slowly and carefully. Because my new freaking laptop has somehow managed to delete 3 of my last 4 attempts at entries. I keep hitting keyboard shortcuts as I type that open windows, open history, open bookmarks and most annoyingly, close windows. So, hopefully, I won't hit any of those keys that do that. Stupid ctrl key is way to close to the shift key.

Right, so, after school got out I went back home. It was really nice, actually. I've been terribly homesick and I was hoping a week or so back there where the skyies are huge and the cornfields go for miles (Oh, I'm a hick at heart, sue me) would be a nice cure. Well, it wasn't, but more on that later.

I started out by driving to Hometown, where J, my good old friend J, met up with me. She and her husband (so weird) live just 45 miles north of my parents now. Which is good news for my dad, since J is preggers (SO WEIRD) and has promised to bring the baby down for visits when it arrives. She and I drove then to Collegetown where we met up with Libby, Einstein and Red. We stopped at J's parents' on the way, actually, and it was nice to see them. They're good people.

Memorial Day was pretty chill - just relaxing by the pool at Einstein's with J, Red and Einstein's fiance'. Then J and I took my brother out for dinner and ice cream before driving back to my parents'. What followed was a fairly uneventful week punctuated by interactions with the people of Hometown. Some of those interactions were good and some were just plain odd.

The good interactions were with the only friend I have left from high school - Mar. I love Mar; she has always been cool. We had lunch twice and she filled me in alllll the Hometown gossip, because she is way connected still.

The odd interactions were with adults. I ran into my 7th grade Home Ec teacher.

"Hi Mrs - !" I say.

"Well, hey Ninja." She replies. "How are you?"

"Good! You?"

"Good. You look like you've put on some weight!" She exults at me (exults. really, she was strangely joyful about this pronouncement).

"Uh, thanks . . .?" I laugh. "I feel healthy . . ."

"Well, talk to you later!" And she toodles off down the aisle.

Um, "you've put on weight"?! If she'd said that that to somebody else, it might've been trouble. I, luckily, don't really have any body issues and happen to weigh 119 pounds and stand at 5'4". I know I'm not chubby. I laughed about it with my parents and then asked them WTF they thought that was about.

Apparently, several of my teachers went to my parents during middle and high school with concerns about me being anorexic. Which is good, you know, because teachers should go to parents with concerns like that. It totally wasn't the case, though I can see why they might think that I was. During my years of jaw trouble, I ate only liquid or soft food and never weighed over a hundred pounds. During my shoulder issues, I couldn't keep anything down because of the painkillers and subsisted mainly on Popsicles. Admittedly, that was super shady behavior and if someone didn't know the situation (I literally, physically could not eat; pain meds were making me puke everything I ate), it would have been completely legit to assume I was anorexic.

So that was interesting. My parents were very reluctant to let me leave, even after I stayed an extra day and a half. They're funny sometimes. It was just really nice to be around people who know me and understand me. It's relaxing to be got. (hideous grammar, but it's staying) I'll be going back a lot, because Einstein is being typically Einsteinian about her wedding. A couples' shower this month and then the last three weekends in July are consumed by a bridal shower, the bachelorette party and then the big day. Um, really, Eistein? That's, what, about $40 a gift, per event. Then factor in the fact that I either have to fly or drive 500 miles to get there. This from the woman who wouldn't even eat dinner out with us when I was in town because she's trying to save money. Very nice.

Whatever. I'll probably just stay the whole month of July back in my home state and drive from Hometown to Collegetown as needed. Maybe J will want to carpool again. I don't have a summer job so really, I'm pretty free. I don't know if staying so long back home is such a great idea given the fact that keep thinking that after this next year of my contract is up, I want to move back. I know. I was all fired up to move here, but I just want to move back. I miss my friends, I miss my favorite sports team, I miss all of it that I just can't find here.

Two things make me have second thoughts. Well, two people really. Cousin Meg and my sister. They were why I moved here. I don't know if they'll be enough for me to stay. Oh!, Angsty quarter life crisis! Run for the hills!