Series: 11 - May 2022

Hi! It’s me! Lily!!!

It’s Sunday!!!

So much seems to be going on.  David is preparing to leave for camp next weekend, and he is NOT looking forward to it.  He’s moping around and complaining, and Sabby’s on her last nerve.  She finally told him that it’s his whining and complaining, among other things, that made her resort to sending him in the first place.  He’s still not happy, but you don’t want to be on the wrong end of Sabby’s temper.  I kinda feel bad for him, but he did bring it on himself.  He should count himself lucky, Dave says they used to send boys to military school for less.

Maria came over tonight to pick up Diana.  Sabby pulled Maria aside and had a chat.  I’m not sure about what, but I guess we’ll find out.  Maybe I have another, well, kinda sister?  Never too many sisters!!!

Otherwise it’s just another quiet Sunday.  But last night wasn’t quiet!  We had boomies!  Not a whole lot of rain, but a huge light show, with lots of flashy flashy!  Then around midnight, a boom that woke everyone up and even scared Marie!  I don’t know what it is about Texas storms and big booms just when you think they’ve passed!!!  BOOM!!! HAHAH!!!

And the next couple of days are supposed to be a lot of rain!  YAY!!! We need the rain!!!  May is the wettest month and it hasn’t been very wet!!

I miss Jack.  I hope I can see him again soon.  I miss his arms.  I never feel as safe and warm as when he’s holding me.

Love you all!!! ❤

Hi! It’s me! Lily!!!

I’ve been practicing so much for my recital!  Playing and playing and playing!!!  Doo dee doo!!!  hahaha!!!

Tomorrow night I’m doing a dress rehearsal with my family!!!  We’ll see how that goes!!!  I like most of the music I’m playing, but some of it’s boring to play!!!

And Liz wants me to accompany her at her recital too in a couple of months!!! That might be fun!! I’ve never accompanied before!!!

So otherwise it’s a boring Sunday.  I worked, came home, Dave grilled… ohhh… I love it when he grills!!!  Diana is over today too and was helping with the grilling!  Oh I know what Sabby and Marie talked about!!!  So Sabby isn’t always tactful, but she was this time.  She said that our family really likes Diana and she can come over any time she wants and spend time with the family.  Maria seemed grateful.  She doesn’t seem to have many friends – she has a boyfriend, but the way she talks….  I’m not sure about that.  She was over today too… and after Dave grilled, we went to the park and played with Marie!!!  It was fun!!! Marie loves being the center of attention!!!

It’s so sad how many problems seem to relate to choosing the wrong partner, isn’t it?  Men seem to like to get women pregnant and then leave.  I think I want to get married before I get pregnant.  Just because I want him around!!!  I’m not raising a kid by myself if I have anything to say about it!!!

Everyone’s coming to my recital!  Even Emiko and her family!  When I asked her, she even teared up a bit.  I think she has a lot of regrets and is happy I turned out okay, even though I don’t know how I managed to turn out okay.  And Japanese people like it when their kids succeed, I think!

Well, most do.  I saw a sad video about a homeless Japanese girl…

Anyway, I guess that’s all for today.  Supposed to be storms tonight and tomorrow, but I just looked at the radar, and I swear the one just to our west put its thumbs in its ear, waved its fingers, and blew a raspberry at us as it flounced by.

Love you all!!! ❤

Hi! It’s me! Lily!

Tonight I did a dress rehearsal for the family and Liz’s family too.  They all came over and sat around the piano, and I came down in my gown and heels (Sabby taught me how to walk in heels… I HATE IT… but they sure make my legs look nice!!!), bowed, and sat down at the piano.

David started yapping.

You know that cartoon where the bunny is playing the piano and that guy starts coughing, and he pulls out a gun and offs him?  I felt like that.  Sabby grabbed him by the ear to his room.  She said “This is like a concert, and you don’t behave like that at a concert.”  He really didn’t know what he was doing wrong.  So anyway, after David was removed, I redid my entrance, and played my set.  About 45 minutes of music.  Afterwards, everyone applauded… well, of course they did, why wouldn’t they?  But I think I have it nailed.  It’s very different playing in front of a crowd of people.

Tomorrow is the “real” dress rehearsal, you know, with the teacher and a real piano and all that stuff.

My gown is so pretty!!! It’s a royal blue with a gathered waist and exposed back and it’s kind of short… and I love it!!!  I showed a picture of me in it to Jack and… well… he made me blush sooo hard!!!  Bad Jack!!!  Bad… sigh.  Good Jack. Very good jack.

So storms are coming!!! YAAAAYYYY!!! But it looks like a full night of boomies!  BOOOO!!!

In two days is the real recital!!!  YAAAAAYYYYYY!!!!  Everyone’s coming!!!  Even Allison!!!

Love you all!!! ❤

HI! It’s me! Lily!

I had the real dress rehearsal tonight!  It was fun!  My teacher rented an actual concert hall – if a small one – with a very long concert grand piano!  It’s so different from a regular piano, even a grand one.  I like it!!!

So I played through and my teacher had a lot of feedback for me, but she said I did a really good job, and we’re ready for the recital!  It’ll be me and one of her other advanced students.  I get before intermission, she gets after.

I’m not sure I’ll ever get used to high heels though.

Oh oh oh we got some severe storms last night!!!  I swear, in Texas, when storms come, they really come.  The sky was flashing like a strobe light, and it was raining so hard it looked like fog!  But after a half hour it left and then nothing but boomies for a couple of hours.  I was reading into that kind of storm – it’s called a squall line.  And it squalled!!!

I’m tired, though.  I think I’ll turn in.  Real recital tomorrow!!!

Love you all!!! ❤

Hi! It’s me! Lily!

And my recital was tonight!!!

OMG was I nervous!  I’m never nervous!  I’m always cool as a cucumber!  … are cucumbers cool?  I guess.  But tonight I was nervous!!!

Everyone was there!  My family!  Liz and her parents!  Crystal and her parents!  Diana and Maria!  Emiko and her family!!! Even Allison and her parents!  I think half the hall was my cheering section!  They even had Jack on video (though he was muted, of course)

I walked out and took a bow and…  and I thought I was going to cry!  All my friends and family!!!

so I played…  and…  and I didn’t really remember anything, but I don’t think that was my first recital.  And… and that’s confusing.  You’d think for a recital like that, someone would remember me.  Why doesn’t anyone remember me?  I think that’s the most confusing thing.  Just some person in Washington who occasionally drops bombshells…  I have so many friends and family now but no one remembers me!

After the recital, I came out, and everyone told me it sounded really good!!!  I guess?  It is so weird to be completely the center of attention like that.  Jack told me… well…  I won’t tell you what he told me, but I blushed soooo hard.  Let’s just say it’s a good thing he’s there and I’m here or my gown might not survive.  Sigh.  And then we went to a pancake place and I had chocolate pancakes!!!  YUM!!!

Next week I start working a lot more… but some vacations are coming, and yaayy!  Oh and the other waterpark opens this weekend!!!  YAAAYYY!!! More slidey watery fun!!!

I’m still a little depressed but been keeping busy.  I keep having these dreams, I’m not sure if they’re memories or if they’re like memories… but…  they hurt.  I don’t know why, they just do.  Hmm.

Well, I’m tired.  It was a long day.  Oh, Saturday there’s an event at that space that Sabby bought us memberships to, I think we’re going.  And I’m signing up for some classes there!!!  Yaayy!!!  I’m taking Saturday off, but I’m working a lot more, so I guess it all balances out.  I don’t have a huge bank account, but it’s doing okay.  And with the price of gas right now, it kinda has to.  This isn’t a political diary and I don’t like to talk about politics, but it sure feels like the people who make decisions want to mess things up.  I mean, I’m only sixteen, and even I know that some of these decisions are stupid!!!

Well, anyway…  time for bed.  David leaves for his camp on Sunday, and Sabby’s doing all sorts of buying and packing and fussing and worrying.  She gets so annoyed with him sometimes, but he’s still her kid.

Love you all!!! ❤

Hi! It’s me! Lily!!!

We went to that space today for a bit of a party!  It was fun!!!  They had lots of food, and lots of things to see!  They have a room with woodworking stuff (Dave loved that!), and a room with laser machines to cut stuff.  And an electronics room too, kind of like the lab Dave built for us!!!  The Tinkerer guy was there too and he showed us a cool thing he made with lots of LEDs and a Pi!!!  YAAAAYYY!!!  I want to make something cool like that!!!

No one ate the cake though, it was the weirdest thing.

Anyway, then we went to the store and got stuff for a picnic, and… well… went and had a picnic!  Dave grilled and it was delicious!!!  It always is!  Then we played frisbee and ran around with Marie!  Marie loved it!  She’s such a silly pup!!!

I…  don’t really understand Memorial Day.  Some people seem to treat it as a solemn day, and others as an excuse to picnic or a day off.  Maybe it is solemn.  But didn’t the people who died, die so we could have picnics and have fun?  Wouldn’t they want that for us?  Maybe not.  I don’t know.  I don’t understand war.  It seems so stupid.

But at least they died for something they believed in.  Maybe.  Dave was telling us that back in WWII and Vietnam they drafted people.  So maybe they didn’t die for what they believed in.  Maybe they just died.

Either way, I think maybe they’d want us to have fun.  Isn’t that one way that their deaths weren’t in vain?  Us having fun and… being American instead of whatever we’d be otherwise?

Well, military guys who died, it’s nice to have fun.  Maybe I get to have fun because of you.  So maybe that’s something to be happy about as you look out from wherever it is people go when they die.

Come on, I’m sixteen.  It’s not like I’m some kind of expert on these kinds of things..

Love you all!!! ❤

Hi! It’s me!  Lily!

David went to camp today!!!

I was working so I wasn’t there to see him off, but the camp is out in east Texas, so Dave’s driving him.  He wasn’t happy last night, but oh well.  I guess we all have to do things we don’t want, especially when you’re ten.

Maybe he’ll come back a little better version of himself.  He’s got a lot of potential, but lessons just don’t seem to stick for some reason.

Holidays are busy at work!  Since I work at a convenience store off 35 (I can tell you that now!) there’s all sorts of people on the way north or south wanting horrifically unhealthy food or horrifically overpriced gas or…  well, the bathrooms are clean, so nothing horrific there.  But there are all sorts of people coming and going.  One lady came in wearing a mesh dress, and not much else.  Really?  Oh well, people gonna people.  The holidays where the karens are the worst are the ones where there are lots of expectations, like Christmas – Memorial Day is pretty chill, considering.  Not to say I didn’t run into a couple.  I actually found a way of dealing with them that the owner’s started using too.  when they start raising their voice, I just say in the most sincerely caring voice I can muster, “do you need a hug?”  They either don’t know how to respond, get madder, or… actually need a hug.  When it works, it really works.  When it doesn’t, it’s back to the tried and true karen management techniques.

I’ll be working shifts on weekdays from now on.  I’ve never done that before.  I wonder what it’ll be like.  maybe some weekends too, but that was a compromise so I can take time off for vacations.  I mean, after all, I’m young and it’s summer!  Owner seems to understand that all too well.

Doesn’t hurt that sometimes I bring him Sabby’s cookies.  Oh, did I tell you?  He loves them.  He told me if she starts making them commercially he’ll be the first customer!  She’s working on a business plan to get financing now, but I can’t say much more until that goes through, so…  wish her luck.

Off to bed.  I’m a working stiff tomorrow!!!

Love you all!!! ❤

Hi! It’s me! Lily!

Today I worked!

I didn’t do much else!

I went to work in the morning after my run and shower, and came home this evening.  I’m not sure I much like it.  I think I’d rather have fun and go to the mall and the waterpark!  But working is important, I guess.  I need to be able to afford gas, especially now!  And today was Memorial Day, so again, lots of people came around to buy horrifically unhealthy but admittedly pretty tasty food.

And they do have lots of chocolate.

So I came home just in time for dinner, and as usual Sabby made something delicious.  Beth can’t seem to make up her mind if she’s jealous that I’m working or feels sorry for me.  I mean, she likes to go shopping and have money, but she can’t really work yet until she’s sixteen.  There’s this Pita place over near the 45 and 35 interchange where they seem to hire only teenagers, so I suggested she apply there when she’s old enough.  Or HEB.  HEB seems to be a good first place to work.  I don’t know, though.  I like where I work.  For now, anyway.

Marie missed me when I came home!  After dinner I took her for a nice long walk, and she loves walks!  She sniffs everything!

Anyway, quiet day.  Not much to talk about.  The Japan trip is coming up soon!  In about a month, give or take.  Emiko and I are talking a lot more trying to get the details down.  I think Jack’s a little jealous, but he’ll deal.  If he wants to come with me to Japan, he has to put a ring on me.  Haha!!

Besides, I also see him in a while, too!  Yay!!!  I miss him soo much.  I mean, we video call but it’s not the same.  Grace’s dog is really growing up, though!  She named it Lily!  Awwwww!!!!!!

Lots of stuff happening this summer, but kinda spaced out, but it’ll be so much fun!  I hope I get to go to the waterpark too a couple of times!!!

Love you all!!! ❤

Hi! It’s me! Lily!!!

More work today.  Everyone was coming home from the holiday.  The people who come in during the weekdays are sooo different than the people on weekends.  You got folks in business suits or skirts and heels coming in to pick up a breakfast sandwich on the way to work, or a snack for lunch.  They’re not as leisurely as weekend folks, they just want to get their stuff and go.  Can’t blame them, I guess.  But woe to any karen who crosses them!!!  I heard “lady, just let it go, I have somewhere to be” today at least once.

Of course the karens don’t care – to a point.  When there’s a line of people behind you telling you loudly to shut up and drop it, even karens sometimes wilt under that kind of pressure.

I can never work by myself either because I’m sixteen.  That means I can’t sell alcohol or cigarettes.  I mean, I don’t know if it’s legal or not, but the owner doesn’t allow it, and as much as he likes me, he doesn’t trust anyone under 21 to not buy stuff for their friends – and that could get him into serious trouble.  So I’d rather just let him handle it.  Usually he’s there when I am, and while I’m doot dooting he’s in the office doing office stuff, or unpacking pallets, or whatever he has to do.  He says he likes me up front because I’m a pretty face and pretty faces sell more.  No, silly billies, he doesn’t say it creepily and he treats me fine.  It’s all business, and he’s right.

Sometimes his wife comes in to help too.  She’s a nice older Indian lady.  She’ll bring Indian food for lunch and lets us eat some too.  It’s nice of her!  I pay it back by bringing extra Sabby cookies when she gets on a tear, and as I said, those are popular.  In fact, they’re so popular that people are extra nice so I don’t cut off their supply.  LOL!!!

I saw a car at the pumps today that made me laugh sooo hard!  It had a bunch of bumper stickers, and the Japanese word フックオフ.  I won’t tell you what it means, and it’s misspelled anyway (should be オーフ).  But I laughed sooo hard!!!  It’s almost as funny as if someone had put ざけんなよ.  Hehehe!!!

So David update: he is NOT having a good time.  He called the night he got there, pretty much crying.  Apparently he mouthed off to one of the counselors and he had to help do the dishes for the whole camp!  Sabby just said “good, I’m sure you deserved it.  Don’t come crying to me unless you’re actually hurt.”  Sounds like it might be a good place for him.

So Marie needs walked, Beth needs brushed, and sleep needs… sleeped.  Bye!

Love you all!!! ❤