90 @ MindSay 
It has so been a while since I've last done this. Mostly because I was off of work for about 10 days and I avoided computers like the plague. Seriously.
In my job (like many) all I do is stare at a computer screen all day long and check my email hundreds of times a day. So when I didn't have to work, no email, no blogs, no Yahoo! news, no computer technology of any kind. I didn't even charge my iPod. Hmm.
During my time off, a few things did happen. First off, my one remaining grandparent turned 90 years old. Happy Birthday Grandma! (June 22nd, if you were wondering). You know, it is funny to me. I am on the cusp of turning 30 (well, 9 mos away, but still) and for many people, that's a big birthday. Then comes 40, where most people start to seriously freak out, over the hill and all that. For me, so what. I am kind of excited about turning 30. I think I am in a good place for my age. If I haven't accomplished everything I wanted to, well, so what? It isn't like I am dying or anything. I'll just pack it all in by 40--or 50. So there you go, I am getting on board with the whole decade change thing. Not everyone does, though, as evidenced by some friends of mine who have been turning 30 for a few years now.
The point is this: I kind of always figured that there comes a point when you honestly say "it's just another birthday" or something to that tune. Which I why I was surprised that my Grandma, 90 people!, was so darn crusty about her birthday. After all of these years, isn't she used to birthdays? Tons of people don't get to live that long or enjoy anywhere near that many birthdays. And grandma is healthy as a horse (mostly....she is 90 after all) so she actually can enjoy being a nonagenarian. Yet, there she was, crusty as week old bread about her birthday. I don't really get it. My sainted (oh yeah, I canonized her since we last chatted) mother threw her a beautiful birthday party on the day of her birthday, and that really seemed to push grandma's buttons. It is all a mystery to me, as most things relating to family seem to be.
So, the party was sort of a mini-family reunion. My grandmother's 6 kids and their respective spouses and children were all in attendance. Most of them live out of town, so it is a pretty big deal to have them all in one place. I thought it was really nice. I got to see many people, cousins and such that I haven't seen in years. In fact, the last time we were all together was for my grandfather's funeral, six years ago. And it isn't like we were yukking it up then...
Anyway, I liked it, I thought my mother did a fantastic job, and I enjoyed seeing nearly all of my relatives.
Here are a few highlights.
Aunt Kate, Cousin Sara and Sara's two kids, Hunter and Hadley, stayed with us for an extended visit. As they are my favorite relatives, this was highly enjoyable.
This is Sara and Hunter hanging out at our place:
It was our first time meeting Hadley, as she is only 4 months old and resides in Alabama. And here she is:
You may remember her first appearance in my blog, found here.
Cousin Lizzie from Texas was in town (sans husband and kids, but you can't win them all) and every time I see her I remember why I like her so much.
Got to see one of my favorite high school teachers, Mr. Hanson (though I call him Doug now), as he is married to one of my dad's cousins. (I'm his favorite, too).
Aunt Mary and Uncle Rick didn't stay long.
(Okay, see, that one above sounded mean, especially since they came in from North Carolina, but Aunt Mary was at her worst. Seeing my dad for the first time in six years, her brother, her only remarks were "you're gray and fat." That's it. Then she walked away. Only came to talk to him once more to complain about the beer we were paying for her to drink. Years now, my mom has been telling me she is a bitch, now I finally believe it.)
That's pretty much the whole of it. Family is exhausting, as is throwing giant shindigs, and certainly we are glad it is over. Still, it was nice to catch up with the ones we miss, and to remind ourselves why we don't miss them all.
If only grandma could realize that when all was said and done, she got a nice afternoon with this trying family that she spawned and beyond that, it was really just another birthday. And she owes my mother a giant thank you. Okay, I'm done now.
I need to feel like this until I die.
I wasn't particularly close to him; I'm not positive I've seen him in person after I was 2 (aka, a time I might remember meeting/seeing him). He was my grandpa's younger brother. He was very close to 91, if he didn't make it to 91. I'm still very sad, though. I was just working on my family tree the other day, having completed the same thing last semester, and Joey was the only one of that generation who was still with us. And now he's not. Now he's gone.
And I'm being a bad person and not going to services because I'm going out to hang out with my friends and be social.
So much for hiding-
Someone on Mindsay, and for the life of me I can't remember who, suggested I read "90 Minutes in Heaven". It's a pretty good book, very moving at times. If anyone else has read it please let me know~
Anybody under the age of 13 should not read this, and if you do, you should not repost this.
Just because you were born in '97 doesn't mean you're a 90's kid.
It's not like you could remember the original Simpsons. I am sorry but three conscious years of the 90's just wont cut it.
You're a 90's kid if:
You remember watching Doug, Ren & Stimpy, Pinky and the Brain , and Two Stupid Dogs lets not foget the BIG COMFY COUCH.
AAAAAAAH real monsters.
You've ever ended a sentence with the word "PSYCHE!
You just cant resist finishing this... "Iiiiiiin west philladelphia born and raised..."
You remember TGIF on ABC. Step by Step, Family Matters, Dinosaurs, and Boy Meets World.
You remember when, 2Pac and Selena died.
You remember when it was actually worth getting up early
on a Saturday to watch cartoons.
You got super excited when it was Oregon Trail day in computer class at school.
You remember reading "Goosebumps"
You took plastic cartoon lunch boxes to school.
You remember the craze, then the banning of slap bracelets and slam books.
You still get the urge to say "NOT" after (almost) every sentence...Not...
You used to listen to the radio all day long just to record "Your FAVORITE song of ALL time"
Where in the world is Carmen San Diego? was both a game and a TV game show.
Captain Planet. He's a Hero.
You knew that Kimberly, the pink ranger, and Tommy, the green Ranger were meant to be together.
You remember when super nintendo's and Sega Genisis became popular.
You always wanted to send in a tape to America's Funniest Home Videos... but never taped anything funny.
You remember watching home alone 1, 2 , and 3........and tried to pull the pranks on "intruders"
You remember watching The Magic School Bus, Wishbone, and Reading Rainbow on PBS.
You remember when Yomega Yo-Yos were cool.
You remember those Where's Waldo books..
You remember when Mortal Kombat Was "Da Bomb"!
U remember eating Warheads.(those sour candys)
You remember watching the 1st Batman, Aladin, Ninja Turtles, and 3 Ninjas movies.
U remember Ring Pops.
U remember drinkin' Fruitopia and Surge.
if you memeber when every thing was "da BOMB"
when they made the new lunchables so that you could make tacos and pizza!!
You remember boom boxes vs. cd players
Writing M.A.S.H. notes. (and the twenty different versions of that)
Making those little paper fortune cookie things.. and then predicting your life with them.
You knew all the characters names and their life stories on "Saved By The Bell"
You played and/or collected "Pogs"
You had at least one Tamagotchi, GigaPet or Nano and brought it everywhere
...Furbies.
You haven't always had a computer, and it was cool to have the internet.
And Windows 95 was the best.
You watched the original cartoons of Rugrats, Power Rangers,and Ninja Turtles.
You had a favorite New Kid on the block, and you knew all of there names
Michael Jordan was a king.
Yikes pencils and erasers were the stuff!
All your school supplies were "Lisa Frank" brand.(pencils.notebooks.binders.etc.)
You remember when the new Beanie Babies and talking Elmo were always sold out.
You collected those Beanie Babies.
Growing Pains.
The world was all *NSYNC vs. BSB.
You remember being shocked when Ginger Spice left the Spice Girls.
Carebears and The Gummy Bear show.
Gak was the coolest thing invented.
Lambchop's song never ended.
The old dollar bills.
Silver dollars, were cool that have.
You remember a time before the WB.
You collected all the Troll dolls
You owned a portable tape player.
If you even know what an original walkman is.
You remember wanting to sit on the orange Nickelodeon couch.
You've gotten creeped out by "Are You Afraid of the Dark?"
You know the Macarena by heart.
"Talk to the hand" ... enough said
You always said, "Then why don't you marry it!"
You know the significance of the number 23.
You went to McD's to play in the playplace.
You remember playing on merry go rounds...at the play ground.
When we were younger:
Before the MySpace frenzy...
Before the Internet & text messaging...
Before Sidekicks & iPods...
Before MIKE JONES...
Before PlayStation2 or X-BOX...
Before Sponge Bob
...Back when you put off the 5 hours of homework you had every night.
When light up sneakers were cool.
When you rented VHS tapes, not DVDs.
When gas was $0.95 a gallon & Caller ID was a new thing.
When we recorded stuff on VCRs .
When we called the radio station to request songs to hear off our walkmans.
When 2Pac and Biggie where alive.
When the Chicago Bulls were the best team ever.
Way back.
when it was all about N64.
WHEN YOU TRADED POKEMON CARDS FOR A LIVING
Before we realized all this would eventually disappear
Who would have thought you'd miss the 90's so much!!!!!
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