Pit Stop in Houston (May 16 – 20)

I had four days to unpack and sterilize my jungle clothes, pack for the extreme corners of the northern hemisphere, and say goodbye to friends and family. Thanks to the advice of a former English-teacher-in-Thailand, I got my hands on some mail order Cactus juice- a unique mixture of sunscreen and pesticide to take care of the sand fleas on Thai beaches. It’s amazing how this trip has magically connected me to all these other people who have had their own adventures teaching in Thailand. Everyone wants to put me in contact with their friend of a friend, or relative who is out there, or in Dad’s case, the random English girl on the plane who was lovely and seemed to have so much in common with me. I’ve spoken with her on the phone and she is indeed lovely. It’s a very small world we live in, and we don’t even realize how connected we truly are.

On the Friday I bid farewell to Houston, I road-tripped it with my parents to Fort Worth for Joey and Rachel’s wedding. I love my parents so much I want to just squeeze them! Just look at the photos and video to see how freakgin’ cute they are! You probably want to squeeze them too. From Buc’ees BBQ to the faulty GPS, we had our own adventure. I do cherish every moment with my mommy and daddy.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TqdIN3ArHfg

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mwej8tk5wxI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gjzW00gFano

Joey and Rachel’s wedding was beautiful, joyful, and a spectacular reunion. Of course VERT was well-represented, and Vic caught the garter… probably because Ross wasn’t there to do the honor. The bouquet was caught by yours truly- I’ve just deleted my pessimistic comment in favor of a more hopeful one. This is a sign of a time to come; when I move back to Houston, get a job to which I feel worthy of dedicating my energy and passion, I’ll finally plant roots. I will be happy to be a good friend, daughter, God-mother, and maybe even girlfriend. Then, dare we say, maybe one day I’ll have my own bouquet of flowers to toss.

But let’s not get ahead of ourselves! One day at a time. First stop, New York!