Once again, being in a rush to get to work this morning, I didn't pack my lunch as usual. So I had to go out for a late lunch around 3:30 this afternoon. I went to I-Green, where I had beef hand-drawn noodle soup. It was excellent: the noodles were unmistakably fresh and homemade, the beef was delicious and well-seasoned, and the broth was very good. On top of that, my waitress was so friendly that I thought she actually wanted to be my friend and a waiter who came by to tell me all the details about the history of hand-drawn noodles in China and their preparation there was so informative that I eventually wanted him to leave to let me enjoy the meal (I say this humorously). And to top it all off, the whole lunch cost $7.50. Oh, and they gave me a complimentary frozen yogurt cone at the end. I will definitely be going back to I-Green!
I've decided to pour myself a glass of malbec, Callia Alta, 2012 vintage, to accompany me on the rest of this writing. As I raise my glass to you, fine reader, I say "salud!"
Also as I write this, the Baby is curled up on my desk, in the back right corner, easily within arm's reach so I can pet her as I please. I can hear her heavy breathing, as she looks at me out of the corner of her right eye. I love the Baby (and Rocky too)!
I was happy to hear that Jeannie and Seva took a walk to visit Mita this afternoon. I know that Mita is ecstatic to be a grandmother. And I'm pretty sure that she would see Seva every day if we allowed her. I get the sense that Mita restrains herself to respect Jeannie's and my wishes to be a family. But I'm sure she was thrilled to get the surprise visit from Jeannie and Seva today. It really makes me happy -- and I thank God -- that I've been blessed with such a wonderful wife and beautiful daughter.
After all the hurt and heartache that I went through at the end of my relationship with Ileana, and even more acutely through the painful break-up and immediate aftermath, I can say that God took me out of something negative, unhealthy, and toxic to bring me to something positive, healthy, and loving. To all the people at work, but especially the young Haverford paralegals, I'd love to say: I got out of an abusive relationship (from your fellow alumna) and now I'm in a healthy relationship!!! I'm more mature than to advertise my relationship, however, especially for such selfish, publicly-displayed vindication. Besides quietly writing about it here, I'm not going to shove it in people's faces. Inwardly, though, I take great pleasure and daily gratitude that God helped me out of something so bad to bring me to something so good. Thanks be to God.
I made myself a promise that I would not return to Costa Rica until at least one of my family members there visits us in Philadelphia. None of my family there knows of this internal promise. And I know that for much of my family there the idea of coming to the United States at all is a near impossibility. But there's some family that could do it. And although Jeannie would love to go to Costa Rica, I'm committed to keeping my promise. I'd rather visit Panama, where I've never been, than go to CR at this point. The only thing that could possibly change my mind is when Seva gets old enough to develop enough curiosity in her roots to want to go and I (we) feel that the trip would benefit her as a form of experiential education.
I'm enjoying reading Mexico City Blues by Jack Kerouac, but it's so seemingly disjointed that it honestly doesn't seem to have a message. I'm not sure what the take-away is, other than digesting a literary genius's nonsense. But I'll read it because my attention span is not so great these days and it's sometimes important to read nonsense to be reminded of the absurdity of life and the importance not to take it too seriously all the time.
I just farted; it's rank. Very high sulfur content.
Finally, as a sort of confession, I'd like to admit that I made a major blunder when I tried to pull the old switcheroo between two girls, one who I was dating, Priscilla, and her best friend, Joelle. This was around 2010, if my memory serves me correctly. I remember being out on the town with Evan and Corey, perhaps that last time that the three of us hung out together. We were at Parc, where we met Priscilla and Joelle. I was the only single one among the three of us at that point, so I somehow got both girls' phone numbers and I think they both got mine. I was definitely attracted to Joelle right from the get-go. But within a day or two after meeting, Priscilla took the initiative to reach out to me and show interest. And that's the precise juncture where I made a mistake; I should have reached out to Joelle, the girl I actually liked, before responding and then playing into -- for the next four months (argghh) -- Priscilla's interest and advances. Before I knew it, I was sucked in to a relationship that I didn't want. I'm sure many guys, and even many girls, have gone through this experience. But towards the end of it, my desire towards Joelle began to develop into something approaching an obsession, which made me irrationally believe that I could pull a switcheroo. Even just writing about it now, I feel silly and a bit ashamed. How the hell did I think I could pull that off?! Well, when I finally got the courage to call Joelle for the sole purpose of seeing if she wanted to hang out, I found out very shortly thereafter that she immediately called Priscilla (her best friend!) what I'd done and that effectively ended the relationship with Priscilla and blacklisted me from any contact, let alone relationship, with the girl who I'd been attracted to from the beginning.
Oh well, as history would have it, I guess a relationship with either girl was never meant to be. So be it. Ironically, only about two months ago, Jeannie and I were in line at the Ikea in south Philadelphia when I saw Priscilla with her mother. I felt like a total fool, as rightly I should have felt. In retrospect, I should have approached her to beg her forgiveness for my inexcusable handling of the situation and for hurting her feelings in any way; I probably would have been met with a slap to the face, or maybe not since she was with her mother. Come to think of it, her mother probably would have slapped me in the face. So maybe it was best that I just played dumb and waited a few minutes, as I did, to give Jeannie the short version of the story. That was the best I could do in terms of a confession at that time.
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