Last year, I was on the precipice of what would soon become the great beginning, a new era, and a start to all hell breaking loose.

Last July, I was vaguely unemployed, and beginning to feel the strain of limited social contact.

Last August, I would get a call that would set the wheel of good times rolling, only to have them crash eight short months later.

Last September, I was hired as a server with the BRAND SPANKING NEW Irish pub that was all the rage in town, and I loved every second of it. We were under-trained, under-staffed, and under the gun, but that’s where the magic was. Each and every one of us held a vital role in that place, and I will always carry that memory with me. With five owners (too many chiefs!), and a handful of servers and bartenders we made a nice dent in the community. And that’s when it happened.

Halloween at the Irish Wolfhound Pub. 2009

Last October. More specifically, October 17th, 2009, the day Texas beatOU. It is a day that has grown to the stuff of legend, at least in my circle of friends and family. It was the day I met him. Hotshot. That’s what he was, sitting all smug at his table, knowing full well that I was there at his mercy. See, the ball had been dropped, and he hadn’t yet seen a waitress, and I was the lucky one *cough cough* that got to bring him his beer. And boy did I. But then I had to endure his snarling commentary and snarky banter, which soon turned into sharp barbs traded back and forth at a lightening pace. That’s what I do, and that’s what I love. And apparently, so did he.

Needless to say that I began to see more of him. Soon even, I was his server, and his motley group of compatriots were my own set of regulars. And they were the good kind too, the kind that loves you so long as their beer glasses are full, and you don’t have anything stupid or mindless to say. So long as you can converse, even mildly intelligently with just enough humor, you were aces in their book. But he always went that extra mile to make me as flustered and miserable as possible. Nothing was fast enough, good enough, or snarky enough. Yet along the way, I stopped being frustrated by him and began to feel the undercurrents of attraction to him. It was strange and unwelcome and exciting and needed…all at the same time.

Snapped by a friend without my knowledge.

See, Hotshot (as he is called), is quite a bit older than myself. And I emphasize the quite a bit. But, where we thought it would be an issue, it wasn’t, and surprisingly, nine months later, we closer and stronger than ever. Fingers crossed it continues, and that’s about where we’re at now. Granted, through the myriad of drama that soon bogged aforementioned pub, I realized that my time had come to leave, but it was done graciously, and I am now exploring other career options.

Recently on a vacation together.

But this isn’t it either. There are a couple of other things that occured between even January and now that have completely reshaped the social landscape I have before me, and those are the things that I will save for next time.

Until then,

Ace

And through this time, I am renewed to pursue my own projects…as varied as they may be.

Wish me luck!

And, we now live in an uncertain time. Who, as a child, ever thought they would live in such dark days? I can say that I certainly didn’t. But, because I am an adult in this ever changing world, I am still scared at times. Scared for what the future holds, and what this world is coming to. I have never felt powerless, but I do feel discouraged.

But, I am not going to give up. That’s just not in my nature, and it’s not what I believe in. Things will get better. They always do. Nothing is ever stuck as it is, but it takes determination and strength to weather this storm. And I will survive. Sure, times are tough financially. I have worried about it, but wringing my hands in fear isn’t going to make things better. I am the only one who can make things change for myself, and I take it one day at a time.

If only everyone could adopt that mindset, well then, we wouldn’t be in such bad shape. And who knows, things could change enough to where people do begin to think like that. To want to change their own fate. To control their futures instead of fearing their present.

Let’s hope that my next stop on the career path is a little more pleasant and lasting. But who am I to know what tomorrow holds?

After speaking to Johnnie last night for the better part of two hours, I am happy to say that we are on the same page. He admitted to not going out of his way to speak to me, but only because he was afraid that it would end poorly. I was afraid that his not calling me back was indicative of the same thing.

So, when we did talk, we found that we both wanted to just be friends. To actually be friends, something that we never did, and will hopefully finally have the opportunity to do. And, despite everything else I had been feeling, I am really happy that it ended this way.

Yesterday was that day. See, I have recently had my life saved. Well, truth be told, it was never in any real, life threatening danger, but still, its the principal of the matter. I had developed an abscess in the tonsillar (?) column, and it was putting tremendous pressure on both my voice (very bad thing for me), and causing me a lot of pain. And I have been suffering from this for about a month, give or take.

Well, Friday, I had an appointment with an ENT (ear, nose, throat) specialist, and well, damn, I didn’t realize McDreamy was a real person. Lawd! I felt my knees go weak, so thankfully I was already sitting. But, he knew right away what was wrong with me, and within minutes had my mouth open, ready to be healed. And how! After all the really nasty abscess-y stuff was removed, the difference was immediately evident, and I was amazed. And in love. Damn.

So needless to say, I am eagerly awaiting the follow-up appointment with Dr. McGorgeous (as he will now be known), and I suppose that I will just see where this goes. It was interesting to note though, that regardless of the circumstance that brought me into his office, there was a slight ping on his part. He had noticed where I work, and asked which store I called home. But the point of his story seemed to only be to let me know that he had hired our patio singer (not from my store) for a private party he had held at his home. Interesting. I thought so, and I let him know it. Why tell me this seemingly irrelevant story? I mean, it doesn’t matter which store I work at now does it? And yes, I suppose that he was just making small talk, but after watching how he interacted with everyone else in that office, both patient and staff alike, I would have to beg to differ. So, yeah, I might be looking into it a little. But with just reason. Good luck to me, and hey, if I am wrong about the ping, well, I will be the first to admit it.

Yet, there is a point to this rambling. After I had been healed, I was able to return to work yesterday. And I wanted it to be a glorious return. That sort of day that you dream about. So after much primping and dressing and getting ready, I made my wonderful entrance, and just, wowed. I know my job, and when I feel great, I nail it. There is no one better, and it makes for one hell of a great night. The only setback was the fact that I had to work with my newly entitled Ex-boyfriend, which was only slightly awkward, and very completely confusing. But that is another story for another day, because to be quite honest, I am still scratching my head as to where we stand on that issue.

But, bottom line is this. To look good, feel great, and know that tomorrow is holding bright new things for you is a great thing. It’s a marvelous feeling that has no equal. Since Friday, my life has quite literally been changed, and I have entered into this amazing new mindset. And yeah, a lot of it has to do with the doctor. He rattled the cage of my world, and, quite frankly, I needed it. So I do plan to see where that could possibly lead, but if it’s a dead end, I am at least of the mind to accept it, step back, re-evaluate, and move forward again, full steam ahead.

***

And that is my great moral of the day. That regardless if where you stand today, know that tomorrow is a mystery. One that you can either make a positive experience, a life rocking time, or one that will leave you feeling drained and hopeless about the days to come. And when it’s said like that, is the choice that hard to make?

Ciao friends. Make tomorrow your day.

But, when we let life get in the way, and allow no time for reflection, things like that tend to happen. July took with it two friends that no longer work at the restaurant (good luck to them in their endeavors), and the newness of my relationship with Johnnie.

That is not entirely a bad thing though. Both of the friends that left had created such a negative void at the restaurant that their absence has felt like a breath of fresh air. And as for Johnnie, well, life shows us sometimes that there is a time for everything. We had our month of fun, and now, reality set in and showed us our differences in the light of day.

And, with the advent of a new month, there is always a sign of new possibilities. I am being trained as a bartender now, school is starting again this month, and I have made a new friend that might just possibly turn into a really good thing.

So, out with the old and in with the new as the saying goes. Let’s see what August can throw at me.

That is, until the evening. I got together with Johnnie, and my best friend Triana, her little sister (who’s visiting from OH), and my other friend Josh. We decided to all meet up at the local ballpark (PSC) and watch their firework show. It wasn’t much, but with admission at $5.00 a head, we were expecting a little more than what greeted us there.

But, at least there was fun to be had. The wind was howling and there were monsoon clouds creeping up the horizon, making it a very iffy firework show at best. The weather held out though, and sure enough, when 9:15 rolled around, up went the fireworks.

Johnnie and me

Fireworks. Pretty.

]]> http://whimsicality.wordpress.com/2008/07/06/4th-of-july-extravaganza/feed/ 0 Ashley http://whimsicality.wordpress.com/2008/07/03/collision/ http://whimsicality.wordpress.com/2008/07/03/collision/#comments Fri, 04 Jul 2008 01:45:17 +0000 Ashley http://whimsicality.wordpress.com/?p=42 ]]> Early this morning in Glendale, AZ there was a terrible car accident. The driver lost control of the car, jumped the median and slammed into a pine tree with so much force, it snapped the tree at the base. It’s a miracle that the man is still alive, although with a severe concussion, broken neck, and ribs, it isn’t exactly what I would call ideal health.

That man was my boss. And hearing about the accident is not exactly what you want to hear right when you show up for work in the morning. Sadly, this entire day has had a surreal quality to it. Like at any moment I am waiting for someone to say, “Just kidding guys. The boss will be back after the holiday.” But with each minute that passes by, that window of opportunity is closing, and was finally shut when I saw the video of the crash on the computer. And when I read the news article. And when I spoke to my boss’ wife.

As I write this, he is still in critical condition. I am praying fervently that he pulls through with his trooper spirit and starts his long road to recovery. But each hour that passes without any news finds my nerves just a little more on edge.

If you are interested in reading the full story, it can be found here.

This is what’s left of the tree he hit.

This is the accident scene after it happened.

The car.

It really is a miracle that he is still alive, and only time will tell how the accident really happened. I can only pray that he pulls out of this well, and quickly. He is a wonderful man to work for, and it is such a tragedy that this happened right before the holiday.

We opted for Hot Dog on a Stick, which will always remind me of sunny days spent at California malls, and hot September days at the L.A. County Fair.

Oh, and when did they change the logo? I don’t recall this scary girl being on all the merchandise! I think I much prefer the Muscle Beach character, for all his stick figure arms and creepy smile. He was like a weird uncle you just get used to having around…and I miss him.

But anyway, after we ate, my uncle was feeling just a little down, so I naturally suggested a sweet to make him feel better. Well, he insisted on getting Cinnabon, which is like his favorite mall dessert…not that he has met one that he hasn’t liked.

So I went and bought two, one for me and my mom, one for him. But, being the people we are, my mother instantly started harping on him to only eat half, which to her is a reasonable request, but to my uncle, that is the equivalent of asking him to eat his own liver. It simply is not suggested that he willfully only eat half of his dessert, and stop eating before he is completely stuffed. Naturally, he refuses, and thus, the Great Cinnabon Battle began.

Yes, that would be my mother’s disembodied hand at the bottom, trying in vain to steal the Cinnabon. You think she would learn that resistance is futile.

Out comes the weapons.

Aaannnddd…things get ugly.

Most notably, my dear uncle’s stubborn child face. Classic.

Reclaiming his territory.

Accepting defeat.

This is how it always ends. He gets his dessert, and my mother is left to huff in disgust. Its really amusing to just sit and enjoy the show.

Not a gracious winner.

The aftermath.

His exact words…”I think I’m going to be sick.”

And people wonder why I love my family. Being with them is like watching the Seinfeld crew, its just magic, and they truly cannot write it better than how life plays it out naturally.

Good times.