monotone, demented, academic karaoke

2005-04-04 - 3:04 p.m.

Friday night I met my parents at the Monstrously Huge Mall to find Mom a nice outfit for Saturday's ceremony. We played role reversal and I was brought in to her dressing room to juggle the clothes on and off the hangers, give opinions and sympathy, and go in search of alternate sizes and supplementary clothing items. After a moderately traumatic experience just short of that achieved during a healthy bout of bathing suit shopping, we finally managed to find a rather snazzy suit that looked great on her, felt comfortable and was miraculously even on clearance. Like a proud hunter with an entourage, she left the store with her head held high and her purchases slung over the shoulders of Dad and I.

We dropped their things at my house and headed out for dinner and killer margaritas. After their long day and a couple of said margaritas, Mom slept through much of The Incredibles back at home before we all turned in.

I woke early Saturday morning and lingered in the coziness of bed with a novel and a feline. One of the better ways to start a Saturday. By noon we were on campus, strolling about in the mist, showing them around, until the skies opened and drenched us. The honors convocation was nice and mercifully brief. Upon its conclusion, they invited us all to sing along with the alma mater. They'd printed the words on the backs of the programs, but had not included the music, so singing along to a song nobody's ever heard before wasn't exactly an option. It was like monotone, demented, academic karaoke.

The folks and I headed to a pub for drinks and an appetizer while we waited to meet my friends. All told, 13 of us celebrated together. It was a wonderful afternoon. It's hard to believe that just over 3 years ago I was so on my own up here and didn't have any of this amazing group around. Now just being with them is the way to celebrate, mourn, and mark all the moments of life.

I've always been lucky to have such a tight family and still have some truly beloved friends back home and scattered around the globe, but I'm quite grateful to have these wonderful people here around me, too. They really get me through.

We made our way back home in the rain and had to bail out some flooding in the basement. Some Eddie Izzard and Finding Neverland made up for the muddy mopping before ending the day as I'd started it - back in bed with the novel and the feline.

Sunday was some lazy time with the folks, trying to help a wandering puppy, shoe shopping (normally ew, but this time was productive) and lunch at one of my favorite pubs before seeing them off. Crashed on the couch with the book and a nice doze for a bit.

Drove out to Rutgers to meet a friend for a talk by Bruce Campbell, who was truly hysterical. Did you know that Trenton has more car thefts every year than NYC and LA combined? I didn't know that; thank you, Bruce. I was surrounded by wonderful people-watching: the type of cultish crowd I haven't been in for quite some time. Yet, with my anti-W pin on my coat, my polka dot knee socks, and my very 80s black hat, I think I still fit in more than I'd realized.

And lastly, off to Silk City for a lovely diner chat. Those are the best, those long conversations over greasy food and just-sponged formica. It's probably a good thing they kept interrupting to fill our ketchup bottle, mop under our feet and such, or I never would have taken the hint to get out of there. Some conversations just shouldn't have curfews.

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