November 9th, 7 days ago, was the birthday of my late great uncle, John. Due to a bad cold, and not wanting to get my father and cancer-ridden grandmother sick, we didn't get to celebrate on time. This weekend, my father, fiance, and I took a roadtrip all the way to Albany, GA! That's where my grandparents, and a lot of our family, used to live. It's also where my Uncle John was buried. We went to the cemetery, first, to pay our respects. I can't be around dead people at all, so I didn't go to his funeral when he died in 2001, and I never got to visit his grave before. After some searching, we finally managed to find the family tombstone! Four plaques were in a row, underneath which were my Uncle Don, Uncle John, and their parents. This was all supposed to be a very serious, sad, and complicated ritual. Until the ladybugs came.
Hundreds of thousands of ladybugs. Swarming. Everywhere. O_O We would have 50 to 100 on us at a time, constantly smacking into us, getting caught in our hair and clothes, and secreting their "don't eat me, I taste nasty!" juice. ONE FLEW UP MY NOSE!!!!!!!!! I was laughing and trying not to eat or inhale the buggers too much to be sad or have a moment of silence. My Uncle John loved ladybugs, so I like to think that he was sending us a message...especially because the swarm centered around the family graves. I was picking the beetles off me over the next hour or so, after we left. I washed my hands three times before dinner! @_@
We went to some Italian restaurant; sadly, I've forgotten the name. Apparently it used to be good, but like much of the city, the quality has suffered. I had the worst alfredo of my life! And I learned that I hate rosemary. I had a little ladybug banter with the waiter...which is odd, considering my anxiety issues. Actually, my anxiety barely affected me at all, to day! I mean, I was nervous, but I let it out by being "cute and childish" instead of cowering in corners.
After dinner, we went to visit an old gaming buddy of my dad! He is mostly deaf, and has severe speech problems; they're probably related, but I don't know for sure. He's 10 years older than Dad, but he and his wife looked like they could be his parents. No matter how they looked, they were absolutely lovely! I don't get along with the elderly or children (actually, I don't get along with any age group, nevermind lol!), I have trouble around the disabled with mental or speech impairments, I have problems with personal space violations, being probed constantly for conversation, etc. All of these aspects of my anxiety were challenged. Somehow, I conquered. I had a good time! Despite being nervous, I really fell in love with them! They're so sweet and quirky! :D His wife and I spoke for hours about her horror movie collection. They literally have thousands of movies on VHS, DVD, and maybe even Laser Disc (all genres, not just horror). She is DEFINITELY a woman and a character, not an "old person". She was a joy to talk to! :) I saw their two cats; one was a feral kitten they found on the neighbor's porch, and raised (she's still extremely skittish, poor thing), and the other was a pure-blooded Himalayan male!! He perched high in the kitchen, and sat up to look at me, expecting respect. His name was Teddybear, but he was also known as "his royal highness"! :P I curtseyed several times in his honor. He really was a beautiful cat!
We were sad to go, but we live several hours away, and it was dark by the time we finally left. I think we got home at 10pm ish. Dad and I fell asleep for a lot of the ride home. I haven't officially gone to bed, yet, though I'm exhausted!
In other news, my fiance just ordered a wheelchair for me, finally. We wanted so bad to find one at Good Will, but they were always out... :( My legs are generally fine, but my anxiety gets SO bad in public, that I often find myself falling over in fatigue. My fiance calls them "feinting spells", but I don't actually lose consciousness. It's no more fun, though. It'll be here by Tuesday, likely. The shipping was free, and if it doesn't get here in 2 business days, it's entirely free to us!! Sounds awesome, to me~ (weather permitting, of course) It's a little embarrassing for me to be riding around in a wheelchair, even though I need it. I feel like I'm obligated to explain myself to everyone, especially people I know, or they'll look at me with disdain. :(
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