icfreeman

Eric and I fell into a rhythm.  Since I could pretty much modify my schedule and dictate when I wanted to work, I tried to sync my free time and off days with his.  Generally, we would spend time outdoors playing tennis.  My (or our) apartment didn't have a tennis court, so we found a court that was nearby.  We'd stop to get something to drink (Gatorade) before continuing to our spot.  Eric gradually introduced me to tennis.  From volleying to serving, he was patient as I learned the game.

One day, as we were driving the mile or so to the court, we had an argument about decorating styles.  I wanted a picture in the living room, but his suggestions and my ideas were complete opposites.  In "our" modern style living room with abstract shapes, Eric wanted a black and white picture of trunks of trees in a forest or some painting of a bistro or cafe.  Not that these are bad paintings/portraits, but they simply don't match the decor of the room.  So as our argument became heated, we pulled in the parking spot next to the courts.

"I can't wait to cream you at tennis today," he vented.

"Yeah, same here," I responded.

We enter the courts, set our stuff down and take our positions.  We volley the ball for a few minutes before we feel we can begin a match.  Eric takes the ball and bounces it a couple to times.  As he bends his knees slightly and scrunches his face, I know he is going to serve a fast ball that I probably won't be able to return.

His focus continues as he tosses the ball in the air and swings his racket with all of his might to hit the ball and send it soaring. 

"Whack!" the ball flies into the air and is abruptly stopped by the net.

Phew, I thought.  That would have been a fast one, and I wouldn't have been able to hit it back.

Try number two.  Eric is a little irritated, but harnesses his anger for the next serve.

"Whack!"  Another hard serve, and just like last time the ball flies straight to the net.

Ha! That's two in a row.  Poor net.  I know the balls were soaring with some speed on them, but better the net than me.

Try number three.  He's more determined than ever to get the ball over the net.  The fact that he is using his anger and getting no where makes him determined to get the ball on my side of the court.  Again he strikes the ball hard and again it hits the net.

By now, it is funny.  I smirk, but try not to laugh.  Eric looks pissed! He purses his lips as his face turns red.  He sets up for his fourth try.

He tosses the ball up, and "whack" it flies right into the net.

I can't take it.  I start laughing.  Good touch right?  Yeah, Eric is really "creaming me".  And by "cream" I mean not being able to start a serve.

This really angers Eric, and before I realize that he has served again, I hear a "twack" where the ball has hit the net.  I lose it.  I start laughing so hard that I can't even stand up anymore.  I fall to my knees holding my stomach as tears start falling down my face.

Eric is so mad that he takes as many balls as he can get and starts hitting them--or throwing them-- at me.  I don't know... by this point I have so many tears from laughing so hard that I can't see anything too clearly.  I just hear soft "thuds" of where the balls are landing all around me.

Finally, after composing myself, we decide that tennis may not be the best thing to do anymore, so we pack up our belongings-- and the dozen balls scattered around the court-- and head back to the apartment.  A cold shower and a few minutes alone really help to diffuse any hard feelings!

After Eric's six weeks were up, he practically moved in with me and my sister.  No one at work knew about us, and our relationship became a secret game.  We'd go to work only to talk about "my boyfriend" and "his girlfriend," and we easily came up with the fictional names and back stories of his girlfriend, "Jessica Banks" and my boyfriend "E.J." (Eric Junior).  Eric claimed that Jessica and I went to school, that's how we could personally identify with the others' boyfriend/girlfriend. 

It was comical for me to go to work and hear about what "Jessica" did that day, and how it made him feel.  It was an amazing communication strategy if any thing ever started to irritate us about the other.  It was especially interesting after one incident in the shower.

Eric came home from work one day, and jumped in the shower, as I watched some television.  He shampoos his hair, and wants to wash his body when he looks around and discovers that there's no soap.  

"Honey," he yells, "I can't find the soap." 

That's because there is no soap, I thought.  I was using the body gel that my German friend, Leonie, brought me when she came to stay with my family earlier that year.

"Just use the shower gel," I yelled back.

He finds the blue bottle of shower gel.  While reading the label, he notices "Gel Douche" written on it, and begins to worry.

"Do you mean this blue thing?  It says douche on it."

"Yeah, that's the one.  It's shower gel."

"But it says douche"

"I know.  That's because it came from Germany.  It's shower gel, but it is written in German."

"Yeah, but it a douche."

"No, it's shower gel.  Just try it."

Apprehensively, Eric pours a bit of the gel onto a loofah and begins to scrub his body.

"I'm douching myself," he says, chuckling.

I get off of the couch and walk to the bathroom to stress again that it isn't a douche.

"It's shower gel."

Eric starts singing.  "Douche, I'm douching myself and it feels so nice."

I roll my eyes and walk off.

The next day at work, he jokingly tells his douche story to all of the employees.  His girlfriend, Jessica, left her "German shower gel" for him to use, only it said douche on it, and what was he to think.  Everyone laughed, but I could only stand to the side wishing that I could interject and tell my side, but knowing that I could not.

 

The next day, I saw Eric at work.  I was still running through yesterday's events in my head trying to make sense of everything.  Was this a one time thing?  Did he want to start a relationship?  Did I want to start a relationship?  What's next? 

Luckily, as I got to work, I saw my friend Crystal.  She was bartending that night, and the only one I was close enough to tell about last night.  I ran through the details.

"Are you going to see him again?" she asked.

Great, just what I was wondering.  "I don't know," I said.  "I know that this can't be right, and so we shouldn't even think about getting involved together."

"You can't.  It's against the rules.  Managers and employees aren't allowed to date," said Crystal.

My thoughts went directly to a former employee, Kayla, who was dating a manager, Tom.  They were engaged to get married.  "Well, sometimes it can work.  Look at Kayla."

"Yeah, but Kayla and Tom were going to get married.  Plus they worked at separate stores."

She had a point.  I'm not marrying Eric, and we work at the same store.  Hmm...  I wondered.

After serving several tables and talking through the decision with Crystal, we decided that no one could know about yesterday, and that I shouldn't see Eric again.

The next day Eric and I started talking as we both toyed with the idea of starting a relationship.  We both knew the dangers, but if we kept it secret, then what could it hurt?

That week, Eric found out that he was being temporarily transferred to a store about an hour away.  He would be there for six weeks, and the company would put him up in a hotel.  When Eric found out, he was upset.

"You'll come visit me when I'm gone, won't you?" he asked.

"Yeah, sure," I responded.

"After all, it's only an hour away.  That's not too far, and it's interstate most of the way."

So off he went.  Though I was still juggling with the idea of whether or not I wanted to pursue this relationship, I knew the time away was a welcomed relief.  After all, if we did date, then he was in a different store, right?

Eric came back to my apartment on his days off.  I would try to correlate my schedule so that we could spend time together, and it worked pretty well.  But as the weeks passed, Eric kept insisting that I come to visit him.

"I've been telling everyone about my girlfriend," he said.  "You just have to come up here so that I can show you off.  They want to meet you.  You can stay with me."

"OK," I finally agreed.

After my shift that Wednesday, I packed my bags and hit the road.  I left around nine and traffic wasn't as bad as I thought it would be.  I guess it's because I was traveling during the week.  As I approached the town where he was, I called to see if he had gotten off.

"I'm closing everything down, but a few of the employees know that you're coming, and they want to meet you."

"I'm still in my work pants, but I have on a tank top.  Do you think that they will figure it out?"  I wondered.

"Don't worry.  No one will figure it out."

I drove to the restaurant, and there were a handful of employees left.  As Eric introduced me, they smiled and went their different ways.  They only one that stayed was the bartender, Trina.

She was a thick, black southern girl with a heavy accent.  Though she was in her early to mid twenties she talked an a high-pitch voice.

"Oh, it's so good to finally meet you, Eric's told us so much about you," she said.

"Nice to meet you," I said.

As she finished closing the bar, Eric disappeared to the back office, and I took in the restaurant.  It wasn't the same as the ones I know.  Table numbers had to be all mixed up, and if I were to attempt to work at this location, I would need to go through orientation again just to figure out where everything belongs.  I gathered a few drink menus and went around ensuring that every table had one.

About the time I was finished, Eric came from the back.

"All finished?" I asked.

"Yup, all done," he said. 

We looked over toward the bar and Eric shouted, "All done Trina?"

"Yup, I'm finished," she shouted back.

We all walked out of the door to our cars.  Though the hotel was across the street from the restaurant, Eric had decided to drive.  We pulled out of the parking lot only to drive into the hotel lot.

The hotel room was nothing to write home about.  It had dark green carpet with a king size bed, a lamp, a television and a fridge for Eric's cokes.  Eric took a shower as I brought my stuff in and got settled.  Then I hopped in the shower to was the work funk off  of me.  Then we settled in for the night.

As we laid in bed, with Eric's arms around me, he whispered, "I was afraid that you wouldn't come see me.  I'm really glad that you're here.  You mean a lot to me."

From the winter event, where I took Eric to work, our relationship changed.  We became friends and started working together instead of against each other.  Then, one day, everything changed.

July 4th was less than a week away when Eric questioned me about my plans for the holiday. 

"I don't have a lot of plans for the fourth," I said.  "I may meet up with my friend Adrienne because it's her birthday, and I may go to the pool at my apartment, but other than that, I don't have any plans.  What are your plans?"

"I'm off that day, so I'm going to my sister's and brother-in-law's house to hang out with them," replied Eric.

It wasn't until several days later that Eric asked me to join him.

"Since you don't have any plans, would you like to come over to my sister's house on the fourth?  We will hang out, go swimming, drink some beer and later we'll cook some ribs."

Okay, honestly, he had me at ribs.  Anyone who knows me knows that I can put away some ribs.  Beer is good too.

"Okay," i said.  "Just call me and I'll come over."

Well, the fourth came, and as my sister, Jara, and I sat painting on the floor of our living room watching The Devil Wears Prada, my phone rang.  When I hung up, Jara asked, "Who was that?"

"That's my boss Eric.  He invited me over today to hang out and eat ribs.  I thought about saying 'no', but I figured 'why not,'" I said.

I got up and got dressed.  I packed my swim suit, towel and an extra change of clothes before calling Eric back for directions.  Turns out, his sister lived only a couple of miles from me.  I got in my car and started driving.

When I got to the house, I went to up to the front door and knocked.  A minute later, Eric answered.

"Come in.  I want to introduce you to everybody," he said.

I followed as he led me to the kitchen where his sister and brother-in-law where talking.

"Ivie, this is my sister, Lindsay, and her husband, John."

"Nice to meet you," I said as I shook their hands.

Eric briefly took me on a tour of the house, showing me pictures of when he and Lindsay were kids, and of Lindsay's wedding.
Then we went downstairs to get in Lindsay's SUV.  We were going to John's parent's house to go swimming.

We swam for a couple of hours and drank a few beers while talking.  John and Lindsay wanted to know about how Eric and I met, what I do at the restaurant, where I'm from, if I have any siblings-- the usual stuff.

Later, when we got back to John and Lindsay's house, they started preparing the ribs. 

Now, the best BBQ sauce in the world is Bone Suckin' Sauce.  I knew that we just had to go out and get some for tonight, so Eric decided to go with me to the grocery store.  We quickly went in and out of the store grabbing the BBQ sauce and a few other items.  On our way back to the house, Eric decided to show me a spot where he used to hang out when he was younger.  We parked, and went through an underpass to where an unloading ramp was to a lake.  At this point, the alcohol had caught up with us, and Eric ran behind the bushes to relieve himself, leaving me with his drink.

Not wanting to watch, I walked to the edge of the ramp.  The cement slab was green with algae, but in the middle of summer, the water looked very inviting.  I took one step onto the ramp.  The water felt warm.  Like warm bathwater, so I decided to put my other foot in the water.  Uh oh.  Big mistake!  As I set my other foot in the water, my weight shifted, and I fell backwards into the lake. 

Eric heard the splash and came to see what had happened.  About that time, I was coming up from beneath the water, but I had the sense to save his drink.  Not one drop had spilled.  In fact, my  hand that was holding the drink was the only dry part of my now drenched body.  Seeing that I was alright, Eric burst into laughter.  Finding humor in the situation, I joined his laughter. 

When I said the water was surprisingly warm, Eric went into the lake with me.  Now we were both drenched as we headed back to the house.  As soon as we got in, Lindsay offered us a nice hot shower.  Eric let me go first. 

Good thing I brought a change of clothes, I thought.

When I dried off and got dressed, it was about time for dinner.  I trounced downstairs to the kitchen, where everybody was at.  Apparently, there was no Coke in the fridge, so Eric and I went down to the basement to grab an extra pack.  We were joking about what had happened at the lake, and then the moment happened.

As we were coming up the stairs, I was just ahead of him, when I turned around to respond to some whitty comment that he had just made.  Because I was ahead of him, when I turned around, we were at the same eye level.  Our eyes met, and the laughing turned to silence.  I could hear my heart pounding, in anticipation of his kiss.  Only, he turned his head.  Moment gone!  I turned back around and headed back up to the kitchen.

Dinner was amazingly good.  I was starving, and just as promised, ribs were served along with what John called "sex rice" because the rice is almost as good as sex.  After we all pitched in to clean up the kitchen, Eric led me to the formal dining room and living room where a feather couch sat against the wall.  This time, Eric didn't let the moment slip away.  In the darkness of the room, he came over and kissed me.  So, I kissed him back.

Funny thing...  After several months of working with this manager I despised, I actually learned to deal with him.  That is after he left to work in the Oxford, Alabama store for six weeks.  He came back and worked-- a little.  Instead of finding him in the office, he now hung out at the bar.  It wasn't until one cold night that something changed between us.

First off, you need to know that Eric owns a Jeep.  Now this Jeep isn't new by any means.  In fact, it was made in 1993, and he's had it about that long.  The radio doesn't work, the heater doesn't work, and there aren't any window in it because they have been slashed.

So one winter night he called me.  When I asked what he had been up to that day, he replied that he was working on his Jeep, trying to replace or fix a water pump or something like that.  He also added that it was not fixed and he was the opening Kitchen Manager in the morning.  He was going to get up early to try to finish fixing it, but if he couldn't would I be willing to pick him up and drive him to work.  We talked for a couple of hours before I finally said I needed some sleep.

I agreed to take him to work.  I don't know why.  Maybe it was because our relationship was more friendship now than loathing enemies.

As I slept that night, I kept dreaming about the early morning call from Eric.  Over and over again, my mind played out different scenarios about my reaction if he called, and his house he lived in.  In some scenarios, I knew exactly where he lived, in others I set out to get him before realizing I had no clue where I was going, and then I couldn't get back in touch with him.

Around six a.m., my phone rang, waking me.  It was Eric saying that he needed my help.  He'd been working on his Jeep for about an hour and a half with no luck.

"Let me get dressed and I'll call you right back," I told him.

I jumped out of bed and threw on clothes for my second job-- playing with kids at Pump it Up.  Soon after, I called him back.

"I'm getting in my car now.  Where do I need to go?"

"I live out on 280.  Call me when you get to the Summit."

I turned the heater on as hot and fast as it would blow as I drove to Eric's place.

As he got into the car, Pink was playing in my CD player.

"I love Pink," Eric said.

"Yeah, me too.  She's my favorite.  I have several of her CDs," I responded.

We talked on the way to work about nothing in particular.  When we arrived, Mark was already in the office.  As the three of us sat in the office, Mark questioning why Eric chose me to take him to work (because I lived the closest to him.  Everyone else was a good 30 minutes away), and Eric asking about the morning duties, I looked over to Eric and began to wonder.

What if he were my boyfriend?  He does smile a lot, and can be sort of a clown.  Naw, that'd be too weird, I thought.  To like Eric like that?  No way!

I looked across the crowded room and there he was.  A tall man in his late twenties, early thirties with khaki shorts and a dark green polo shirt.  His brownish-red hair was cut short and he had thin-framed glasses that his chocolate eyes peered out of.  He was with two of his buddies, and they were laughing at some joke that one had just told.  As he scanned the room, our eyes met and instantly I knew he was the one.

If that's the type of story that interests you, then my story isn't for you.  My story isn't about love at first sight.  No.  My story is more like loathe at first sight.  Like when Elphaba and Galinda first met in the story Wicked.  But just as in Wicked, our loathing of one another grew into respect before finally changing into "love."

My story begins in my senior year of college.  Normally, I wait tables, but soon after the new year, a manager was fired, leaving the store short on management.  I was asked to help out.  While working a management shift on day, my boss, Mark, came to me and says that they are transferring a manager from the Homewood location to come help us out.

I groaned.  I didn't mean to.  After all, I worked in the Homewood store for more than two years, but after my boss was transferred to another store, they brought in a new management team, and the store has gone downhill ever since.  In fact, Homewood managers are lazy, and if rumors are true, then this manager is going to do nothing but sit in the office most of his shifts.  I was close...

I came into work eager to get started.  I already had my set of manager keys, borrowed from the administrative assistant.  I was scheduled to work the alley, the server part of the kitchen where food is picked up, drinks are fixed and, by the looks of the kitchen at this time, messed are bound to happen. 

Servers can be such pigs!  Soup spilled on the counter from ladling it out of the pot, lettuce on the floor from cooks and servers making salads and tea mixed with sugar from where servers had sweetened the tea, which has now dried on the counter, causing me to scrub to get it clean.  As I was scrubbing, Mark cam around the corner with the new manager.

"Eric, I want you to meet Ivie.  She's a hard working girl who will be helping you out in the alley tonight," he said.

"Nice to meet you," said Eric.

"Nice to meet you," I said.

Not bad, I guess, but then I had only endured about thirty seconds of him.  At least he wasn't sitting in the office.

Mark soon left, leaving me and Eric to fend for ourselves.  Even though it was a weeknight, we were busy.  Cooks kept running out of meat, causing me to run to the cooler to retrieve whatever was needed.  Then there were the servers who needed coupons taken off of checks and change for a twenty.  Looking up and down the alley, a tornado must have come through when I wasn't looking.  I knew I had just swept the floor less than five minutes ago, but now there are croutons, that damn lettuce, rolls, fries... Geesh.

After catching a breather, I went to look for the new manager.  After all he can get change too.  I'm not the only one around here with that kind of authority.  Two guesses to where this Homewood transferred manager was.  Yes, that's right, the office.  Sitting at the computer doing who knows what when there are tables to talk to, servers to assist and cooks to look after.

Throughout the night, I kept running to retrieve pieces of meat for the cooks, and every time I passed by the office, my blood pressure jumped.  I guess the rumors are true.  All Homewood managers know how to do is sit on their butts doing nothing much. 

By the end of the night, not only was I exhausted, but I was also pissed off.  I hated working with this new manager.  I'm doing all of the work, while he just lazes around.  Thus started the attitude Eric and I would have for each other for months. 

Poor Eric.  He's not feeling well today, or this entire week.  I think he has an infection somewhere in his body, and his lymph nodes are swollen.  He just feels bad, and worst of all, he has to close tonight.  He layed in bed until noon today.  I went home around 11:45 and made him some Matzo Ball soup, or as Eric calls it:  Jewish Penicillin.  I hope it will make him feel a little better.  And he's decided to stay at home this weekend.  He can blame it on the sickness, but in reality, he just wants to spend a normal weekend with his girlfriend (i.e. me!)

Yesterday, Cathy and I went to eat dinner with him at O'Charley's.  He didn't look happy then either, but it was nice to see him.  It was good to catch up with Cathy.  She and I have an odd friendship.  We can go weeks, months, even years without seeing each other, and when we do see each other again it is as if hardly any time has passed.  We meet and catch the other person up with what's really going on in our lives.  Weird.  With most people, when you ask what's new, they reply "o, not much", but with Cathy we really go into detail about school, work, relationships, etc.  I like that.  It's neat because she's the only person that I do that with... and vice versa.  I mean, I knew Cathy since we worked together when I was sixteen.  Now I'm a few days shy of my 24th birthday and we still talk.  That's amazing since both of us randomly ended up in Birmingham, and I lost her number about 18 months ago.  Anyways, that's Cathy. 

This weekend was fun.  Since Eric and I are going to Panama City this weekend, I had an oil change and tire alignment.  I dropped it off, and Jara drove me back to my apartment.  Well, the shop closed at four, and Jara was at work until five, so I needed someone to take me back to pick up my car.  Eric talked his boss into letting him off early so that he can take me to get my car.  After we got the car, we had the entire afternoon to be a normal couple.  With our schedules, Eric and I don't have a lot of time during the day to be together, so we decided to go engagement ring shopping.  After trying Levy's and finding that they were closed, we went to Brookwood Mall.  It was so nice to just spend time together just walking around in the mall.  The ring places we went to in Brookwood had nothing that appealed to either of us.  About that time, Crystal called inviting us to come over to her house to eat and watch football.  Eric and I decided to go, and had a nice evening. 

On Sunday, I got a haircut, which I badly needed.  Then I relaxed until it was time to cook dinner.  I made Shepard's Pie for Eric.  He liked it.  It needed salt added to it because I didn't put any in it.  *Mental note for next time!  Then we had our normal Sunday routine of watching TrueBlood and Entourage.  Super nice weekend!  I just hope this upcoming weekend will be just as nice.

Oh, and good news... Eric has a doctor's appointment for next Tuesday.  YAY!!!

This weekend was interesting.  My boss, Mark, found out about me and Eric.  He confronted me at the bar with Tasha standing right beside me.  So, needless to say, Tasha found out too.  Mark was happy about it, and Tasha was a little disgusted-- reflective of their own relationships with Eric.  It was kind of funny.

Eric and I were watching TrueBlood together last night, and we believe that Sam will end up being a werewolf.  More and more subtle hints are coming out, such as Bill guarding Suki's house and then a dog runs up to sit and guard beside Bill.  Plus choice words such as "territory" have been said between Bill and Sam.  It will be exciting when they do expose Sam for what he is.

Yesterday was a super busy day.  With a networking event in the morning, and a PRCA event at lunch.  The day flew by, which is exciting!  It moved me one day closer to the weekend.  Today, I've been researching prospects and writing articles. 

The past few nights, we've had people over for dinner.  Last night we had Jeremy.  Dinner was delicious.  We ate chicken quesidillas, rice and beans.  Jeremy bought some cheap wine that tasted like kool-aid.  It was good though. 

Eric was off yesterday and Wednesday, and I have been hounding him to make a doctor's appointment for more than a month now.  Other people at his work have also been bugging him.  Well, when I found out he didn't make an appointment yesterday, then I text messaged his dad and sister, telling them that Eric didn't make an appointment.  They both called him at work today to fuss at him.  It's so nice to bring in reinforcements.  Eric really needs to get to a doctor about his blood pressure though. 

I'm ready for a good book.  I wonder what I can find at the library.  I think I will go this weekend!

The past two nights, Eric has made dinner.  It's been nice because he's a good cook.  Last night, he invited his sister, Lindsay, and his friend, Craig, to come have dinner with us.  We had fried pork chops that were delicious!  Tonight, we are having chicken quesidillas with mexican rice and refried beans.  Yumm, and thank goodness I don't have to work with him tomorrow.

This weekend was quiet and nice.  Eric worked and I stayed at home.  Saturday, when Eric got off, we invited Craig and Julia to come over to watch football.  We ended up playing dominos while watching some of the games.  Craig just moved here from Panama City, and Julia came here from Florida about a couple of months ago.  Sunday, Eric and I just watched TrueBlood and Entourage.  We crawled in bed early, and both of us were quite restless.  We tossed and turned, and didn't get much sleep.  Weird how that happens.  I guess it was because I took it easy this weekend, and just relaxed.  It's always nice to have those weekends!

Why do people hate going to the doctor?  I have to admit, I dislike going to the doctor, but with Eric, it is like pulling teeth to get him to see someone about his blood pressure.  I have been bugging him for about two months now.  I even have help.  Some of his coworkers, his sister and his dad are pressuring him to see the doctor.  Eric worries me.  He is constantly hot or sweating or red.  That's not real good.  I usually freeze.  I will wrap up in blanket and will still be shivering while he sits right next to me in his underwear complaining that he is hot.  Crazy boys.  I know he needs to get that checked out.  It could lead to serious adverse health risks if he doesn't seek help.  It makes me cringe to think that I could lose him.  That's funny because I never thought I would care for a guy like I care for Eric.

And it's funny how when Eric and I finally let our guards down, we easily meshed.  it's as if I have known Eric for many years.  We never went through normal relationship steps either.  One day we were coworkers, and the next, we were practically living together.  Did he ever ask to stay the night, NO-- he automatically did it.  But then it was as if we could read each others' minds, and everything just became easy.  Now I'm not saying that we never got/get into arguments, but it is just easy.  I used to ask mom how she knew that dad was the one.  It sounds cheesy when she said that she just knew, but now I understand.  Eric is my best friend, and we care for each other very much.  I could see myself marrying him.

Eric's father came in town yesterday.  He scared me.  Apparently, he ate some gas station hot dogs for lunch, as he traveled from Panama City to Birmingham, and became ill.  He couldn't keep anything down.  That wouldn't be too scary, but he's a diabetic.  He needs to keep up his blood sugar, and if nothing is being digested, then he's definitely not getting any sugar.  Eric and I thought we were going to have to go to the ER, so they could give him some drugs that would allow him to keep down some food.  He ended up drinking a coke, and laying down.  After a little nap he started feeling better.  Can you imagine being sick on the road?  I know that's a horrible feeling!  Anyways, he was awake bright and early this morning, so I assume that he's feeling better. -- But then you know what happens when you assume...

I ended up going to tap class.  I missed last week, and I was eager to get back.  I really enjoy going to tap because I am constantly learning new steps.  It is challenging, and I like it.  I can keep up most of the time, but when I learn a new step, I have to concentrate.  It's much different than jazz.  I like jazz because of the stretching and cardiovascular workout, but it isn't challenging.  I am not trying to bad-mouth either.  It is just that my old studio was strong in jazz, but weak in ballet.  If I were to take ballet at my new dance studio, I would probably be behind. 

I went to the doctor today.  Although I am not 100 percent healed from the surgery, I was okay-ed to resume all regular activities.  Finally, some good news from Dr. Kennedy!  It has almost become a joke. She always gives me bad news, or does something unpleasant to me.   I hope that my body returns back to normal.  I like Dr. Kennedy, but it is never the greatest day if I have to see her-- no offense Dr. K!

GRRRR!!  Guys are so infuriating sometimes.  I think I will get on my soapbox a little this morning. 

I love Eric, but he can sometimes irritate the mess out of me.  This morning when our alarms went off, instead of hitting "snooze" so that I can gradually wake up, he turns the alarms "off' after the first ring.  Let me just say that it is much harder to turn the alarms off than to send them to snooze.  The alarms are on our cell phones, so by pushing ANY button, you are sent to snooze, but only by opening the phone and pushing the "exit" button will make the alarm actually stop.  Eric says, "Baby, it's 6:30."  -- Really, why hasn't my alarm woken me up before this time-- Oh yeah, he turned it completely off.  I usually wake up between 6:30 and 6:45.  Needless to say, I woke up in a bad mood.  Wouldn't you??  Then he gets pissy because I'm in a bad mood.  He fusses, "I just hate your moods."  Well, if you hate them so much, then 1. don't turn OFF the morning alarms or 2. go away and leave me so that you never have to deal with me again.  If I did that to him, then he would wake up in a bad mood.  Maybe then I could complain "I just hate your moods." 

And oh yes, I have to deal with his moods every week.  On Sundays, he has to deal with church people (The worst people to wait on because they think they are holier than God, should get superior one-on-one service, then not tip. "I give 10% to the church, why should I give more than that to you?"  Oh, yeah, because God doesn't make a living off your tips.  I have to put up with being harassed by you and then not being tipped?  Next time, just go eat somewhere else.)  Anyways, he comes home in a bad mood.  Then, on Mondays he comes home in a bad mood because he had to do inventory at 5 a.m., which tells him his Gap.  That's always stressful, plus he has to work with a certain lazy manager who never supports him, even when Eric asks for help, but likes to fuss at Eric when he messes up.  I understand why Eric can come home in a bad mood.  I just deal with it.  After all, if I had to work with the "fat, lazy" manager, or worse the "I'm a dumb-ass" manager that are his coworkers, I would pull my hair out!

So, he has no right to get fully upset with me.  I deal with his moodiness, he can deal with mine!

This week Eric has been great!!  Yesterday, he worked late and didn't get home until around 8 pm.  I decided to take a shower before going to bed, and just as I got into the shower, he came in to ask what we needed from the store.  Now, Eric hates going to the store.  If I know we need groceries, then I had better get them because he will moan and groan about going to the store.  So, for him to actively volunteer to go to the store is weird.  He claims that since he had a relaxing weekend, now he has some energy to do stuff like clean the kitchen (on Monday) and go to the grocery store (on Tuesday).  I appreciate his efforts, but have been picking on him a little.  I like this new Eric, and I don't want him to go away after only a week or two. 

Today was exciting because I went to the Stephenie Meyer website (www.stepheniemeyer.com/) and there were FAQs about her latest book Breaking Dawn -- the fourth book in the Twilight saga.  She also posted a blog entry about someone illegally taking a copy of Midnight Sun, which is Twilight told from Edwards point of view, and posting it on the internet.  Now as much of a Twilight fan I am, that's just wrong.  I am eager to read the book, but taking it a distributing it on your own without the authors knowledge or permission is just not ethical.  That make me mad. 

I didn't go to dance class last night, but rather stayed and did pilates in my apartment.  I have a DVD with pilates exercises on it.  There are five 10-minute workouts.  I did upper body, abs, then total body.  I'm a little sore today, but not bad.  I tried not to work myself too hard yesterday.