Sweetness

It's been 8-and-a-half weeks since my last Diet Coke. Habit, kicked. Moving on...

Since I last wrote, Mama Jan and I ended our volleyball season. I'm still taken aback at how much fun I had, and how much I took from the experience. I genuinely hope that some of the girls keep in touch; a few of them were genuinely cool, like to the point that I'd want to hang out with them if they weren't half my age and ass-over-elbows obsessed with Justin Bieber. In 10 years, we could have a volleyball team reunion over cocktails. Over the course of the season, I tried to approach the girls like my favorite coaches and teachers had-- plenty of discipline and hard work, and enough humor and kindness to present myself as their advocate/counselor/friend if they needed it. I don't envy kids their age; it must be ridiculous trying to navigate the intricacies of adolescence with the added pressures of Facebook, texting, and the horseshit that's offered as entertainment for that age group. Oy.

Speaking of which-- I reunited with an old friend a few weeks ago. Crystal was my best friend when I was in elementary school, and after freshman year of high school, we had totally lost touch. (We went to different high schools; she went to a normal one, where people are socialized properly and attend magical events like football games, while I went to a school with a kick-ass robotics team, where school dances were held in carpeted multi-purpose rooms.) Through the powers of Facebook, I'd learned that Crystal had started working in the culinary arts, specifically in chocolate, and had even started her own business. Since Sister Carrie's baby shower was approaching, Mama Jan and I met with Crystal to order some of her sweet creations for dessert.

1. Crystal is a damn genius with sweets. When we were little, she was all about the chocolate; she'd eat Cocoa Puffs with chocolate milk. I'm not kidding nor am I exaggerating. And now, she is a professional chocoholic. It is [literally] sweet symmetry.

2. Our reunion was awesome. We talked until 1 or 2 am, not unlike our sleepovers back in the day. It feels like we've both lived a few lives in the interim.

3. Cake balls. No, but seriously.

And in most recent news, ATL Andy and ATL Laura got married this past weekend. After Bro-Joe's wedding weekend in Monterey last year, I never thought I'd say this, but Andy and Laura's wedding is tied for Dana's Favorite Weekend Ever. Someday, I will write a lengthy post about everything that I love about Andy and Laura; it will include hilarious anecdotes and touching stories, and it will be awesome. I'll write about fried green tomatoes, handcrafted cocktails, and how everything about the entire weekend was representative of who they are as a couple. In the mean time, I'm just reveling in the fact that two of the best people ever have found each other and made promises for the long haul.