Chapter 211: Graduation (Friends Forever)

Okay, so I am going to keep the blog VERY short tonight for a couple of reasons. First of all, it is currently 1:18am and my alarm is set for 5:45am. I don't like those numbers much at all & need to make sure that the majority of that time is spent sleeping. You see, because the rehearsal dinner for my brother's wedding was cancelled, I am now having to be in Fort Myers, which is about 90 minutes away, by 9am to rehearse before the wedding. That is just fine, though, except for the fact that we initially thought rehearsal would be at 11am and the plan was for the whole family to drive down and spend the day there. This was a good plan. Now that we know that the rehearsal is at 9am, though, that plan has gone out the wibdow. Instead, my Mom's boyfriend is going to drive me down there at 6:45am and everybody else will come down later in the day. This would be an okay plan, except for the fact that my Dad's side of the family are going to be down there, as well, leaving me to face them without any backup, aside from my brother, who thinks it's silly of me to dislike and not want to associate with them. So, we'll see how it goes. I'll just have to put my best face forward & hope for the best. The rehearsal being moved wound up being a pretty great thing, tho, because it meant that I was here in town for my sister's girlfriend's daughter's graduation! As much as it doesn't really hold any sentimental value to me seeing people graduate, since I never did, it certainly makes me feel old seeing this particular person do it. It just doesn't seem like all that long ago that I was hanging out with this 14 year old "stepniece" of mine & all of a sudden, she is an adult & finishing high school. Where the fuck did all that time go? Despite the ridiculously hot weather, scary bleachers, cheesy student speeches, etc. It was really a lot of fun & I was really glad that I got to be there for it. After the graduation, everybody headed back to my sister's house & had a little afterparty. This leads to the second reason for keeping this short - I've been drinking. I didn't drink all THAT much but enough that I still need to sleep it off a bit. It was a lot of fun, though, & I got to meet some cool new people. I also got to spend some much needed chill time with my sister & her family, which is always good. Best of all, I got to hang out with my friend Kessler, who I hadn't seen in several months. It was really nice to have a little time to catch up with him. Oh, there is a third reason I need to keep this short. The fierce diva that is my Aunt JoAnn is in the next room & has already given me a stern "you need to get to bed." My aunt JoAnn is one of those women you just don't disagree with. She is awesome. So is my cousin Chelsea, who sat up & talked with me for a little while earlier. I love the family that's here right now. I'm really excited to see them all. Tomorrow? Totally not ready for that family. Should be interesting. For now, though, it is only this: Goodnight.