The Greatest Story Ever Told... About Last Week.

Gather round, kiddies, for I have a story for you. Odds are good we'll break it into parts if only because there's pictures for some of the parts. You ready? Because I am.


We begin our tale with little backstory. For the past year or so, zallia and I have been trying to work out a visit. It's fallen through and been pushed back/around a few times but this year it was totally happening! I didn't say anything prior to it (hints, yes, but nothing concrete) because I didn't want to jinx it. I spent a good chunk of September and early October cleaning on my days off and while things weren't perfect, I do feel like they were pretty good. Still, I wanted to do some last minute stuff Saturday, so I figured that since she was set to come in early evening/late afternoon, I'd get up around 3 since I also had to work that night and I need sleeeeeeeep and hadn't slept the day before either.

Yeaaaaaah, that didn't work. People woke me up at 1pm at the latest and since my room gets really bright in the afternoon, it was impossible to go back to sleep. So I cleaned cat boxes and made up the beds and stuff.

And worried a smidge because what if she didn't like me? What if she was all "g'ah, why did I come to this stupid hick town instead of some place awesome? What if Ozma adopted her and loved her bestest? So many worries!

Cass and I went out to the airport and waited and waited for them to let people off the plane. As we waited, we were joined by two women, the younger of the two laughed like a dying dolphin. I can't really explain it beyond that. She had the most annoying laugh I have ever heard and that includes every drunk girl I have ever heard and I think drunken laughter is annoying as hell. It was so bad that when we saw them wave to someone, we stepped back a good five feet because if she was that annoying laughing at non-funny things, how bad would she be when presented with someone fresh off a plane?

Turns out she wasn't bad because she disappeared. :p


Annnd then z appeared and the hair was awesome and we were off to the baggage claim! Where we could be smug in our choice of carousels and mocking of ten gallon hats and antlers. Bag was found and off we went to the parking garage which is still weird because the last time I went to an airport prior to this was prior to 9/11, I think. Weird. Cass decides we should go to Toys R Us because who doesn't go to TRU on a Saturday evening? But first we must pick Matt up from... some guy's house. Whose dogs escaped and wanted very much to hop in the back seat and see z. We learned the back door, driver side, is possessed and will close on you, and then we went to TRU.

Which was filled with disappointment. Why so filled with suck, TRU? Why? Did get to see the teenage fairytale high characters in person. Well, some of them. I'm pretty fond of Cindy and Alice, so I might end up with them though it's not because they seem very... fairy tale ish. It's also a "sale. I'm gonna need a sale" type of situation because they aren't $20 dolls. Nope, no way.

McDonalds was dinner and home away home where the boy seemed to have eleventy billion people over. I think it was just five, but it felt like more. One of them offered to take z's bag upstairs and Widget quickly descended and, I gather, demanded to see everything the awesome z brought. Mwerp! Less than an hour into this, I had to go to work where I was super tired all night long. Super tired. You know those days at work where you seriously consider what would happen if they found you passed out on the floor? One of those days. I did make Mums promise to rescue z from Widget because while he's adorable and can be very sweet, he is also very, very much to take on one's first day. Mums emailed me when she got home that z was safe and probably asleep, or at least hiding with the lights off, so rescue was unnecessary.

Came home and slept til damn near 3pm. Luckily, z did, too. I think that was pizza day? After that was the pool which Widget had been whining about since the night before. About five minutes into this, he decides nope, he's done. It's so cold! So very cold! But the water was nice enough for dangling feet in so... we stayed for awhile. I would have gone back and gotten my suit but I wasn't really in the mood to factor in another shower into things. :p Instead we decided to head out on a walk so I could see more of the neighborhood. Widget took us around after we pointed out that we'd be going with or without him, so I finally saw the houses in front of ours, and we realized that no one friggin' decorated for Halloween this year. D:

Widget took us on the golf course that has signs specifically saying no walking if you aren't a member, no children, no bikes, no NOTHIN'. But the geese and ducks begged to differ. We found a Canadian flag, so clearly the Canadian border isn't too far. ;) Which explains all the Canadian geese!

I amuse myself, don't worry. Then we walked back home along the street and found a few more houses decorated. Widget ran into a small gang of little people who eventually pulled him away with, "TC! TC! I need to talk with you! TC!" to which I might have cackled. A lot. Z and I set him free and continued our walk of disappointment and found that one of the walkways was more like an alley where one might run into Mike Brown, ghost hunter. (I'd link to a picture but the website clearly realized the brochure picture was less "Intrepid explorer!" and more "why do dudes wear shit like this? It is not a good look. Ever. On anyone. Ever.")

Home away home where I don't remember much other than Widget kept coming in and wouldn't tell us what the younger girl wanted but if we kept asking enough, he'd flounce. :p


Monday we braved the city Market so z could have some souvenirs. I foolishly thought, "an hour. Max. And then lunch!" Um, no. So z and Mom can laugh and tell me how foolish I was. I didn't bring my camera so you'll have to see z for any photos there. Highlights of the day include:

Finally seeing someone I know buy a sweetgrass basket!
"Lord have mercy, child! Purple hair! I love it!" (Thus began a mental running tally of how many people came over to exclaim over z's hair and then I stopped being able to count.)
The boy sending a text at 2pm on the dot 'reminding' us that he had to get his check before work but even if we'd left right then, we wouldn't have been home before 3 (lunch!) so... I dragged my feet and we wound up at the Spice and Tea Exchange where I tried some tea that did not agree with me and the tastiest cheese dip known to man or hamster. I bought a little packet of it as well as the other dip on display, thus marking my first purchase of the day. I should have stopped there. Really should have. Even if the other dip turns out to be nasty at home, the cheese one was yummy enough for both.

Instead, hopped up on the tasty dip, we ended up at Kilwins to try some fudge. And there was this slab of caramel sea salt and it looked so good that my inner child finally broke free and said, "look, are you or are you not an adult who can buy fudge at two in the afternoon on a Monday and enjoy it simply because it is delicious? How many years have you denied yourself this because school or whatever said no? Who cares if there are no prices, buy the damn fudge!"

Annnnnnnnnd I shouldn't have. There's a reason there are no prices on the fudge in store. It was ten damn dollars for a piece. But still, it's fudge and I figured it was worth a one time splurge and z buys a piece and they're buy 2, get a third free so why the hell not?

I'll tell you why not.

For ten damn bucks I shouldn't be able to say I can do better. :( Pumpkin Walnut Fudge was weirdly off in that the after taste was better than the actual taste, for me anyway. Soooo disappointing. :(


Hit the store on the way home to get stuff to make the dips, and then Mums began Ham & Cheese casserole (yum!) and we opened the Riesling C sent me home with the day before and plans were made for the following day to be beach and mall day, followed by possibly spending the night at Cassy's so that we could begin Wednesday (AG day) bright and early.


Naturally beach day was rainy, but it wasn't cold, so that's a good thing. It was low tide, which of course meant that the beach was divided into ocean and tide pools and the tide pool was deceptively deep. :p


Some beachy photos:
( The sky and the water are the same color. Creepy. )

I need to go back on another cloudy day. It makes me happy. :D


And off we went to the mall! We entered through Target and then headed off to find coffee for z. Only the coffee place in the mall closed. Which is funny since every time I've been to the mall in the last ten years, it was the only place with a line no matter the season. So... we found a tiny TRU outpost and they had the Fearleading set but it's $45 and that just seems... excessive. D: They didn't, that I noticed, have the I Heart Fashion Scarah or Clawdeen sets either? But just about everything else. On we went to Justice.

Where I found out that my suspicions about scalpers being in the area were not just paranoia. Justice, btw, was empty aside from the employees and us. We get directed to the proper section and we look and are told that Holt isn't in stock and they can't keep him in stock. Still, they do have GiGi and the Legacy Day dolls and Hunter & Ashlynn and the whole store is 50% off! So I cave and buy Frankie and Rochelle as well as the first GiGi I've ever seen in town. z buys Ashlynn and Hunter as well as LD Raven. (Not sold on the two pack, though I will probably end up with it because of reasons, but LD Raven is a hell yes, though I wish to put her in regular Raven's outfit.)


At the front register, I decide what the hey, and ask if there's any specific time one should attempt to try for Holt and the checkout girl says not really, but there is a waitlist but... there's a woman at the top of the list requesting SIX Holts. At best that's wiping out two cases, but I think z is right and that he's actually short packed so... wtf, man. Why the fuck would you let someone request that many of something you cannot keep in stock? You limit them! Make her at least get someone else to help in her scalping, Jesus.

Target has the two pack EAH set but no Cat Tastrophe :( Still, I buy the 13 Wishes movie and away we go.




Next time, our exciting tale continues with Drama In Georgia!