And Sometimes, the Unexpected Normal

"A good relationship is like fireworks: loud, explosive, and liable to maim you if you hold on too long." Jeph Jacques, Questionable Content, 11-14-08

Today started at 5am. I don't know why I was up at five, but I was. The whole day felt off after that and I didn't get much done. The lack of sleep was starting to catch up with me by about 3:30 and my husband, who was in New Jersey helping his grandfather pack for a move, wasn't home yet. We were supposed to go to a party at 5, but I was dragging and, I'll admit, a nap was looking very tempting.

My friend Susan called to see if we were coming and convinced me to venture out, and I'm happy she did.

When we got there, Sue was grilling up burger and veggies and had a host of yummy salads spread out on the counter, and Z. had made some pulled pork bar-b-que with Pigman's Bar-B-Que sauce. Pigman's is a great little place on the Outer Banks and my favorite bar-b-que. You can find it at http://www.pigman.com/ . The picture is of my half-eaten bar-b-que sandwich, decorated with a candle in celebration of my birthday last weekend. And yes, there was coleslaw on the sandwich.

There were fireworks after dinner complete with a "Bouncing Betty" misfire that inspired my husband to run AT the sparking ordinance, grab it and turn it around so it wasn't shooting toward the rest of us. Heroic, but perhaps not the wisest decision. Thankfully, no one was hurt but it did add to the evening's excitement.

It was a couple hours of normalcy - a good meal, hanging out with good company, and I almost missed it. But I'm not going to dwell on that, suffice it to say that there have been many times when I was too tired to go out, and had to cancel plans in favor of an early bedtime. Thanks to everyone for a lovely evening. I'm glad I got to spend it with friends.