Thanksgiving Weekend (Wed-Sun Nov 24-28, 2010)

I got out of work early on Wed, around 2:30 and went home to pack and clean up the kitchen a lil' before leaving and to eat food that would go bad by the time I came back. I didn't end up leaving til around 4:30 or 5pm which I realized was kind of a bad time, but it didn't seem too bad really. The freeway was good, the canyon was good, the valley on the other hand was slippery. That 'blizzard' had already frozen over with the freezing temps so it was slushy and slickery. But nothing to fear like the news said. I took a running leap into the snow ditch that was left for me to park at the house.

I walked in and Dad had some visitors so I took my dog and went downstairs to where they were all huddled to give Dad some privacy. The boys wanting to play the video game and the women clueless how to turn it on. I showed Mum the jacket I bought her and it didn't fit...so we'll have to return that. I was ready for some noodles, mmm mac and tomatoe. I should cook it myself at home, but its just not the same without my mother there cooking and/or eating it with me.

After that first visitor then came the Relief Society Pres apparently, for some reason. Those two talk -all- the time and quite frankly its a lil disturbing, but whatever. I didn't realize she came to the house so often and thought it must be an important subject so we should leave them alone. While they were talking there was a knock on the door. My Dad gives me that mad, leave me alone, bugged eyed look when he states my name and that the door is for me. Low and behold, there stands Colby Dallas Larsen. Stalker/suicide kid from high school. I invited him in with some reculectance with Dad and his visitor there. We sat at the kitchen table and talked. His brother passed away in June or July I believe, Jordan was my age, nobody really knows what it was that killed him, prolly drugs. We talked about his family dealing with that, his mom and her boyfriend, his army plans, etc. He lost a lot of weight. Still wears the same clothes tho... All in all I realize he hasn't changed much. He still has this ego and thinks he can fix anything and most disturbing is that he still doesn't care ...about anything. No emotion. He doesn't care so much about his brother, he doesnt care about his army career, he doesnt care if he dies in said army, he doesn't really care about his other bro and fam, he doesn't care about holidays, etc. He 'accidently' left his gummy life savers (which he is apparently addicted to) and left his number and left as I kept yawning and was getting bored with the nonchalant convo. I wonder what happened to those life savers now that I think about it...

So the strange thing, not surprising if you think about it, but how the hell did he know I was home? Besides guessing for the holidays? I just barely got home. He apparently came while I was at the store, we took my sisters car. Then he came back once we got back from the store. He said he walked from his moms boyfriends house somewhere in town and was going to walk to Subway or something, when he left I watched him walk across the street, get in a car and drive away. Liar. Was he just sitting there in the neighbors driveway waiting for me? Why did he say he walked from my town to Bensen? That's ridiculous and not really impressive. Kinda creepy. We don't have each others numbers prior to his knocking on my door.... Meh, I suppose I'm used to being stalked.

Thurs I woke up like 9 or 10, not too late, not too early. I slept with my dog and he didn't attempt to pee on me this time, but he still was too afraid to go upstairs by himself. The last time was cuz there were kids on the floor in the next room, but they were gone this time. Max is such a scardy cat. We both laid down that night and were out like logs. We didn't move til like 7:30 in the morning when Max got antsy and prolly had to pee but didn't want to freeze his weener off in the freezer cold, can't blame him I suppose. I ate waffles and curled my hair, well kinda, it doesn't curl so well. I dressed up in the only nice sweater that still fits me, kinda, and my gray dress pants (which apparently look like sweats to Loryn) and started cleaning up for Thanksgiving dinner.

Diana and Sheri, Mom and Dad, Me and Scott, Dallin and Loryn her best friend Kate and husband Nate, Dustin and Sarah, Billy and Yolanda with McKayla, Mindy, Cole and Braxton...and Max were all there for dinner. Dallin came early and cooked up two turkeys with his spicy injections. We dug in around 1pm. Mmm stuffing and real potatoes, my loverly ceasar salad (I'm obsessed with salad for some reason), beans, and best of all HAM. Forget the turkey. I had two plates of food. :D I didn't even want dessert, I could live on my salad. I think I ate most of my salad.... no luck for the others. I guess I didn't really eat what anyone else brought... didn't eat Loryns or Dianas or even Dallins turkey really. All Dallin had was a plate of turkey with a couple dozen rolls. Oy. We were just missing the jello... mmm.

After we ate all the girls gathered around the table and looked at the shopping ads. Black Friday preparation. Sarah helped me alot with Christmas ideas for her fam. I picked out stuff I want/need. When I get Min's house in the summer I'll need my own kitchen stuffs, so its cheaper to buy it now on sale than next summer I concluded, its not like I'll get a wedding/reception between now and then which bears gifts like too many toasters. So I got a pot set for like $20 and now I'm looking for silverware, that would actually seriously help in my current living situation, more silverware! Anyway....shopping for others.

(Friday) Sarah wanted to go shopping at Wally World at midnight for the boys' stuffs and wanted me to go with her. Mom stole my car at 3pm cuz it was the only accessable car and Natalie wanted to go know around 7 or 8 if I could give her a ride home from her Mums house. Their car isn't working apparently. So I took Mums car and went to get Natalie. Saw Gramp and Gramps from Montana again and their yapping dogs, they were kinda cute. The 'whiny' Sara they claimed was pleasant as a peach when I showed up. Took them home and played for a bit before going to Wally World around 10:30 to see what they had on sale and/or buying things not on sale first. Sarah found her bikes she wanted and I found the Kitchen Aid I was looking for to give to my bro for Christmas for a cheap $150 as opposed to the $300-$400 they usually are. There was a lil' line in the kitchen section and I asked what it was for and they said the kitchen aid and that I would be the last one (#8) to be able to get one. So I was like sure, I'll stay and be the last one to get one. No one else even showed up or showed interest in the item so it wasn't really a fight. So I sat in the kitchen section for the next hour or so waiting for the midnight sale to start. Sarah went over to the bike section and waiting that last hour in that line. Billy and Yolanda brought McKayla and watched all the crazy people, esp in the movie section.

Dustin was working in the bakery (handing out donuts, which I didn't get now that I think about it) and we put our shopping cart behind the bakery counter while we ran around checking stuff out and coming back with more. Slight difficulty trying to hide a giant kitchen aid from Dustin while he was back there with the cart.... I covered it up with a coat and told him not to look. That wasn't obvious, right? The kitchen section was pritti pleasant with just us eight women. The employee sent down the kitchen aid one at a time from last in line to first, when we all got one and was satisfied we parted. I carried that heavy thing from one end of the store to the other to put it in Sarah's cart at the bakery. That was really I could/wanted to get cuz all the ppl I was shopping for showed up for the sale (Sarah, Dustin, Billy and Yo). I bought some snack food cuz I was a lil' hungry...but other than that... I just showed up an hour and 1/2 early to stand in line for one item and 2 hours to check out. Mom showed up with Loryn and Katie and they got a few things. I went back to help Mum and before the show started I helped Sarah get one of the bikes back to the bakery. Then we all met up at the bakery and headed to check out and randomly left the line to check things out. Teehee. Dustin and his crew brought wakie talkies and left me with one so we could talk while we were in line for our products. That was kinda fun. Mom found someone this a talkie and radioed me to see where I was, but she never found me... I ran away after I got my product. She came just in time for the 'ready, set, go' part. She got off work and helped set the boys up with a sleepover and I called to see what she was doing and they were all yelling about sleepingbags and I remembered I had a sleeping bag in my car and thought it wouldn't help b/c I thought I had my car, but then I remembered we switched cars so she got my sleeping bag, convienent timing eh?

But yeah, it took two hours kinda to check out we got home around 2am. We parked like right across from each other at the store so since we shared a cart we shoved everything in our own cars. I shoved one of the bikes in my car and Sarah dropped off the other bike to hide from the boys. We emptied our cars and Mum and I took a nap before heading off again for the 5am sales. Everyone else went home and to bed for good. We got up around 4:30 and went off to Kmart. There I got my cookware set and Yolandas kitchen dishes she wants/needs (or Sarah wants her to have so she can keep hers) and I think that's all I got. The rest of the cart was full of what Mum wanted. She got an easier Christmas tree for Gma to put up, some frames to decorate her front room (my kinda decorating a whole wall of frames!) ... I don't remember what else she got...

We wandered over to Kohl's and got the toothbrush Mum wanted to get Scott. She was looking for the Scene It Disney game for Diana and Sheri (who we have for Christmas). I was looking for those shoes and/or boots that Mindy wanted (not sure why) but I couldn't remember what store they were in. So we went over to JCPenny afterward to find another size in coat for Mum. The first one I pulled off the rack and she tried on we got it. I found another cute sweater type thing (like I did last year) and again no luck on shoes and we went to check out. The coat costed $18 more than the $32 I got and Mum so politely says "thats okay" as I get out my money... Gee thanks. But that coat is super cute on her.

After that it was like 8am and we were ready to be done. I was hungry so we were done and came home and cooked breakfast for those who were up. I had Mac and tomatoe again while others had eggs. I love breakfast, but it just felt like it was dinner time or a midnight snack time. We fed ppl and chatted a bit and then we went to bed while Dad and Min took the boys sledding and apparently my dog got involved in that and got mad when he was forced on a sled by Dad. Poor scardy cat dog. We got up around 2:30 or so cuz Mum had to go to work again and I planned on playing with Natalie and Resa. I bummed around the house til 4:30 and put my check in the bank and headed to Natalies. We played with Sara and ate popcorn and sherbet. We watched Diary of a Wimpy Kid also. I wasn't really impressed. My body was tired and ached but my mind was all there. Resa seemed the opposite. I think we weren't so entertained at Natalies house. Natalie wanted to go shopping and how better to do it with ppl who had cars. Resa went to get her hubby to take to Wally and I took Natalie. We met at Wally for a few minutes and then parted and went home. I shopped for laundry and dish soap etc and found the GPS Mum wanted to get Dallin for $60. Somehow I ended up spending yet another $100 at Wally. The second time in like 48 hours. I blame Natalie. I brought Mum her Wimpy Kid movie back at 11 cuz I thought she was getting off work and coming home, but noo, she lied and called to say she was working til 3am. Totally sucks after the night we just had. Oh well, I suppose she's used to it. She crazy. I was kinda dying there. So I went home and watched Burn Notice til I fell asleep on the couch. I love those kind of nights. Falling asleep to the TV. It got too hot and I moved to my cold dungeon tho.

Sat I woke up around 12:30pm or so. Loverly. I ate and took a shower...mm to be clean and have a morning routine again. I can't remember what day was what, being the crazy schedule I had Fri-Thurs. But from 2-6pm I literally sat on the couch and snacked while watching like a marathon of Burn Notice that was recorded. Then I got up and finally got dressed to go to an activity with Mum. I only went for the food. Then we went shopping and grabbed some burgers and chili from Wendys (soo not good service) and came back home. We got back into our PJ's and watched Burn Notice some more. Dad came and went several times and found us in the same position on the couch every time. Soo lazy. Nothing done that day. I kinda felt bad cuz I think Natalie and Resa wanted to play again, but nobody texted me almost all night and I didn't have the ambition to text them. Yay for lazy days!

Sunday I slept til I had to pee at like 9:45, straightened my hair, and went to church. Came home around 2:30pm and ate til I popped. I made Mum make my favorite Zippy Beef dish. She put it on the table and said "now go home". She's so pleasant. Apparently I was supposed to go home early in the morning or last night to avoid the 'snow storm'. I packaged up lots of food from the fridge and packed up my stuffs and went out to play in the snow. I unburied my car and dug out the drive way and a path to get my car up to the garage to pack. Ice under fresh snow caused me and my lack of traction boots to fall alot. I hurt today. So much lifting of snow and falling down into it. I attempted to back my car into the garage and got stuck in some snow and then stuck on the driveway itself with all the ice, once I gunned it and looked back I saw Dads truck....haha... I decided to be a lil more tactful than gunning it on ice afterward... I finally got the car packed and warmed up around 4:05 or so. I have to admit I sat in my car for another 10-15 minutes and pondered the journey I was about to take and I so very much prayed in my heart that I might survive. I just had an icky feeling about leaving that driveway, besides the wondering if I even could leave the driveway... But I was brave and I left. Making it to the main roads is key in such situations. Anyway, that treacherous trip is in the last entry so I shall continue.

Turns out at 4pm, the time I was sitting in the car contemplating my trip, a mother of three boys died on that freeway at Riverdale when two bigger vehicles spun and collided. That same car in that same position that I saw on ksl news was the one I slowly passed by around 5 or 5:30pm. It didnt look like a lot of damage, but it was enough to kill someone. Despite my doubts, I could've been killed out there that night just like her.

I made it to Gma's and saw her new tree and candles/lamps. It was pritti. The drive scared the pee outta me so I used her tiolet and ate her jello stuffs and headed off again. Another slow trip home. I made it home four hours later (8pm) and unpacked the whole car and started whacking off all the snow/ice stuck to my car. I realized I did that b/c in Logan you take off all that snow wedged up between your tires before they froze overnight and you couldn't turn yer wheels the next day. But it all melted in the garage anyway. I wrote in my journal for an hour and then watched Hulu til midnight and went to sleep in my nice lil' bed with my car safe in a garage and a place where the sun will come out and melt all my fears on the road away in the morning. How did I ever live in Logan?