reunited

...and it feels so good.

This weekend was my reunion.
Awesome.

No, it really was awesome.

The funny thing about high school is that it is a short time in one's life--maybe the shortest stage--but it is the time in life when we develop our identity, which makes it a very significant period of time. Most people would never in a million years want to go through high school again, and I am in the majority, for sure; however, it's still fun to go back once every decade to see what everyone's been up to and to see the people who helped you establish your identity (that you have probably--hopefully-- shed for new identity by the 20 year reunion).

The ten year reunion, which I've whined about possibly too much, was a cliquey event. Ten years isn't a lot of time to pass between graduation and reunion. There may be some insecurities that remain, some old relationships that still hurt or cause one to feel embarrassed (not speaking from personal experience. Ha!), and you're also still trying to establish your place in the adult world.

By the twenty year reunion, we're married, maybe divorced and remarried; most of us have kids; careers are mostly established; identities are more secure and are likely vastly different than the identity one had in high school (thank god!)...everything feels more settled. At least that's how I felt, and I'm one of those people that thinks everyone feels the same way I feel.

Okay, so it's TWENTY years later, and this reunion did not feel cliquey to me at all. Of course I was hanging with my girls, but I also chatted up people that weren't part of my high school group. Most of the women looked great. Amazing, even. The guys were all men. It's weird how that happens. Some were heavier, bulkier...a few had less hair. They all wore their new looks well, though.

I only had one person who was a complete ass to me, which is exactly how he was in high school. Oh well, no worries. Obviously not everyone matures and grows in 20 years, so KH, maybe at the 25 or 30 year reunion, you can act like a reasonable mature adult.

My favorite part of the reunion was just seeing the girls I hung out with in high school (RB, JM, RR, HM, SJ, JD), and I even mingled with a few women I wasn't tight with in high school but whom I get on with awesomely now (BSR, that's you).

I missed some people: Andy, Dave, Andrew M, in particular. They were the guys I think of when I think back to high school...maybe briefly they were boyfriends, but more importantly they were boy friends. I hear they are all doing well, and that makes me so happy. Back in high school, I never would have thought that I would care what my classmates would be doing in 20 years, nor would I even imagine that I would be happy, thrilled even, at their successes and happiness. But I am. I can honestly say that being in a room with a bunch of people who really seem to be where they want to be in life--or are headed that direction-- is very uplifting and satisfying.

The gin and tonics help keep that high feeling going, I imagine.

I can't wait for the next reunion...5 years from now, maybe?

unfocused

I have about 6 unfinished blog posts that are just going to whither and die because the relevance of the posts are simply...irrelevant.

Succinctly: Paige graduated. We both survived. Summer is awesome but far too short.

We just returned from a 10 day trip to SC. It was fun. Humid, hot but wonderful. Then we came home to record temps, which I am loving. It helps to have air conditioning and a pool. This past winter was so long and horrible that I am fully appreciating the heat and sun that we are experiencing now.

Tomorrow night...
Night One of The Reunion.
Mount Si Class of 1989
'89 Rulz

It's an all-weekend-long event. Friday: meet at a bar. Saturday: The main event at the casino. I'm excited to see several people. It should be fun. There's some people who aren't going that I'd like to see, but oh well. Oh, and major excitement: there's a nightclub with a dj. I have so been craving to go to a club, but I don't want to be That Old Lady at the club. I'm hopeful that at a casino (in Snoqualmie no less), my age will be less of an issue. I'm probably delusional.

Sunday is the family picnic, which Paige doesn't want to go to because she doesn't want to be That Kid: the one that was born soon after graduation. But she's so not That Kid. There were a lot of babies born around the time she was born--more than I knew of anyway.

This should be a good weekend, but it'll probably make me feel ooollllllldddddd. Ugh.

Snews

20 Year High School Reunion (Go, Wildcats!):
Paid for, which means I have to go. Damn. No, I'm excited to see the old Mount Si Alumni Classof '89 (ROCKS!). Should be fun...and there's bound to be booze. Can I just say now that I think Jen Mathwig, Sabrina Johnson, Andrew Hassard, Andy Archibald and Dave Cottrell should attend this time. Throw in a Jason Gregory for good measure... It'll be good to see others, too, but thems was my peeps--good and bad. Ups and downs. Renae will be there, though, so I'm good.

Weight Watchers:
I am now an official Suburban Mom. I joined WW a couple of weeks ago, and I'm progressing slowly and steadily. It's been easier to follow than the South Beach Diet we were on a few years ago. Thank gods.

Power 90:
My dear friend, Shawn, has been talking to me about Power 90 for a few months. She has lost inches upon inches. I'm giving it a go. We're also joining the Y. Time to try Zumba, maybe?

Sasquatch!:
Ahhh... we thought we weren't going to be able to go, but we pulled it off last minute. Maya is going to stay at my mom and dad's with my sister and her kids. Britt is going to her mom's, and Paige is here or there or wherever she may be.
Last year was amazing. This year,the weather should be perfect. No rain or clouds in the forecast, and it should be nice and toasty. I can't wait!

The kids:
20 days until school is out (20 school days, anyway), and I can't wait for this year to be over. It was the year of the blahs for Maya. The year of me pulling my hair out because of Paige. One down (Paige) and one to go (Brittani). Brittani, btw, is so on top of everything it gives me goosebumps. Portfolio: check. SAT: scheduled for June 6th. Community Service: in the works. As stressful as Paige's senior year has been, I think Brittani's will be a breeze.

We're planning another trip to see Mickey and his crew in late April or early May of next year to celebrate Brittani's graduation. We are very excited!!

Class of 1989...2009...2019

high school reunion 2

My high school reunion-- 20th-- is probably in 2 years or so.
I say probably because someone has to organize it, and who knows if someone is actually doing it. It's probably the same damn people who used to do all the stuff for spirit week in high school.

Last reunion (10th) was okay but could have been soooooo much better.

I told my friend Renae that if we planned it, it would be way cooler. Our reunion was in a dingy conference room at the Red Hook Brewery. One must take into consideration, however, where I went to high school (wow, they changed their website. It looks pretty lame now). Snoqualmie, Wa. Small town-- actually, kids came from like, three surrounding areas to go to the one high school-- North Bend, Fall City, Preston and , of course, Snoqualmie.

A lot of my classmates still live in The Valley. Hey, if you click that link to the alumni site, one of my former classmates is in the alumni spotlight (unless it changed)! Andrew Miller...

He was adorable back then (I've always had a hang-up for red-haired guys), and damn...he looks exactly the same. Please tell me that is a picture from high school. Shouldn't he be fat and balding? Ugh.

Which brings me to my topic at hand.

I need to get into Reunion Condition.

This is even more serious than Wedding/Cruise Condition, which I took very seriously. Reunion Condition is going to take more planning and time. I'm older now and have gained another person on my belly and ass. My ankles are becoming cankles, and all I can do is eat ice cream...

Which isn't going to help me at all.

Reunion Condition...well, I don't see me getting back to my high school weight (105-110). Even at the last reunion, I weighed 115-125. I can't really recall.
Diet. Exercise. Weight training.

Will I need to join Weight Watchers? A gym? Can The Firm get me into Reunion Condition? Should I start smoking? All the skinny anemic people smoke.

No. Smoking means wrinkles. I'd rather avoid wrinkles. And there's the whole cancer thing, too. And it's stinky. And expensive. And generally unattractive.

Botox. A friend was telling me that if we go in together and share the bottle of botulism, that the clinic will charge us less. How much is Botox? She said that the last she heard, a few years ago, it was $350. Three HUNDRED and Fifty DOLLARS. May need to rethink the Botox idea or...get a job!

So I need to set some goals. I need to plan out my life for the next two years. How to get down to *"fuck you" weight by 2009.



*by "fuck you" weight, I don't mean TO fuck you... you know, it's the whole: fuck you; I look good for being almost 40. Shit. Almost 40.
I'll probably need some mood elevators by 2009.