Sinner's Alley Happy Hour (Part 1)

Parent Cafe
1081

<p>Hi all,</p>

<p>I am back from the drop off and am in one piece. Our family had a really special long vacation together and towards the end of it, we all took D to college en masse. </p>

<p>Move-in was uneventful. Everything flowed smoothly. Very well organized. My only hassle was that BB&B had transfered our stuff to a different store (unbeknownst to me.) So after showing up at the originally-appointed store, I had to go another 20 minutes to a second store. The managers were very apologetic and nice and gave me a discount too. Other than that move in was cake. </p>

<p>The killer moment of the day was when our littlest S (7) disappeared for a few minutes mid-move-in. My H found him outside the building, leaning head on forearm against the wall, sobbing. He had been playing around with another kid, so at first H suspected an injury-- but it was tears of sadness to soon be separated from his very loving big sister.</p>

<p>Then when we actually exchanged final hugs and drove off, older S (14) and D gripped eachother for a minutes-long bear hug and both had tears rolling down. That’s when H & I lost it. Then D wiped her eyes, smiled happily, waved, and headed off to some pressing orientation appointment. We waved back, drove the car a few blocks away, parked in a lot, and all four of us cried together! </p>

<p>I am glad I can remember the joy of college myself and realize that she is filled up with excitement, promise, happiness, newness. She can miss us but that will occupy only a tiny space because of all the brand new things. Meanwhile, we four have eachother, and will be closer in new ways as the family dynamic shifts. So we’re all okay.</p>

<p>Oddly in the days since, while we have been home, there hasn’t been the pang of loss or the “empty room” thing I thought there would be. I suppose partly it is because-- between my D’s sports, studies, music performances, & paid employment-- for the last two years, her typical presence in our house was quickly shovelling food in, studying, or sleeping. Basically as long as she has been driving, she has been gone a lot! So the vibe of the house is not entirely different.</p>

<p>And the cell phone era makes her so reachable that I am actually hesitating to intrude on her first days at school; I know I can always get her any time. </p>

<p>Let’s all toast to our kids spreading their wings, growing, and becoming the people they are meant to be. It is going to be very interesting to see how they change and where they go!</p>

<p>NOTE: How ironic, phone just rang! D checking in. :)</p>

1082

<p>Sweet post, SB, thanks for sharing.</p>

1083

<p>SB mom:</p>

<p>Sounds too familiiar- I am not quite realising D is gone, because she was hardly here anyway and she calls or emails to get logistical things figured out- so it feels just like grade 12.</p>

<p>My D3 & D2 farewell hug was also epic and tear inducing for Mom.</p>

<p>Good luck to your crew!</p>

1084

<p>We didn’t have any teariness among the siblings when they parted, but we did notice that our son–four years younger than his sister–immediately–I’m talking about the car ride home–began acting much more maturely, as if he had totally shed the annoying whiny little brother role. When they got back together, a few months later, they were like best friends, sitting together, daughter’s legs across son’s lap as they exchanged stories, and as S asked for, and received, social advice from D re high school. It was very interesting to behold, and I’ll be interested to know if any other parents notice a similar change in the younger sibs.</p>

1085

<p>:) SB, a Flirtini will perk you up, and it’s on me! :slight_smile: </p>

<p>FLIRTINI</p>

<p>1/2 ounces Stolichnaya Razberi Vodka
1/2 oz. Cointreau
Splash each of lime juice, pineapple juice, & cranberry juice
A few raspberries
Brut Champagne
Sprig of mint </p>

<p>Muddle (use your imagination on this) raspberries in the bottom of a cocktail glass. Shake the first five ingredients & strain into glass. Top with Brut Champagne. Garnish with a sprig of mint.</p>

<p>BEACON, welcome to Sinner’s Alley (perhaps, you’ve been here before, and I was too busy holding Sybbie’s hair back)! This thread was started by doddsdad about a million years ago, and the rules are posted at the very beginning. It’s sort of a hideout from the sh!!storm that rages (occasionally) outside of these cheap, paneled walls. In addition, we are all exempt from the grammar Nazis because we’re drunk most of the time. :smiley: </p>

<p>Curm, our curmudgeonly bartender, will serve you anything you want, and we have a HealthBAR, where tiny onions and stuffed olives qualify as vegetables. So, pull up a barstool, my shiny amigo. Rootbeer or real beer, I’m buying. </p>

<p>I’m off to track down the pervert who exposed himself to my 17-y/o son, yesterday, at our family health club. H filed a police report, and my slugg radar is on. I am good at looking under rocks. ;)</p>

1086

<p>^^^ That pervert is done for. :eek:</p>

<p>SBMom, I loved reading your story. Even in my altered state due to move-in manque at Tulane, I could share your experience and feel the tenderness.</p>

1087

<p>Thanks jmmom, you have real generosity of spirit! :slight_smile: </p>

<p>We are ALL thinking of you and your S. Looks like options are springing up right and left; keep us posted!</p>

1088

<p>SB,</p>

<p>I am glad that everything went off well and yes, I still have your back :slight_smile: So let’s have that drink and toast our kids.</p>

1089

<p>Slugbugg,
The Flirtini sounds wonderful. I’m running to the liquor store right after work and buying the ingredients. Doddsdad and I will celebrate the end of the work week with Flirtinis.</p>

<p>Have a safe and happy Labor Day weekend all.</p>

1090

<p>Hang in there, folks. :wink: (Fats Domino on the juke box)…</p>

<p>Walking To New Orleans</p>

<p>*This time I’m walking to New Orleans,
I’m walking to New Orleans,
I’m walking to New Orleans.
I’m gonna need two pairs of shoes,
when I get through walking me blues,
when I get back to New Orleans.</p>

<p>I’ve got my suitcase in my hand,
now ain’t that a shame.
I’m leaving here today,
Yes, I’m going back home to stay,
Yes, I’m walking to New Orleans.</p>

<p>You used to be my honey,
till you spent all my money.
No use for you to cry,
I see you buy and buy,
'cause I`m walking to New Orleans.

I've got no time for talking, I've got to keep on walking. New Orleans is my home, that's the reason while I'm gone. Yes, I`m walking to New Orleans.</p>

<p>I’m walking to New Orleans,
I’m walking to New Orleans.*</p>

1091

<p>SBmom–sounds great! You have such a warm and close family. Like some have sad, my S grew up immensely after his sis left,and now they’re extremely c lose friends, worked together all summer, and share many of the same friends.j</p>

<p>Tomorrow we drop Soph S back at school; Monday grad D moves to her first big-person apt—line up the Flirtinis (or some wine will do). Don’t know if I’m celebrating or mourning, possibly both, but life stays interesting.</p>

1092

<p>Garland,</p>

<p>We are definitely celebrating you, Hubby and kids for a job well done. Daughter is making her first big move, she’s got a job, a plan and money in the bank. She knows that you all support her and are supportive of her.</p>

<p>Hey we’ll live on the edge, I’ll have a flirtini with ya. There will be no crying in the beer tonight as we don’t want to water it down any more that it already is (besides I really don’t like beer). </p>

<p>We would bring her a nice bottle of wine for the house warming but you know that Curm and Doddsdad won’t let us take any of our drinks out of the bar (Rememinds me of those people who let you eat anything you want at their house but won’t let ya take a plate home. gosh).</p>

<p>I guess it bad enough that we are deadbeats drinking up all of the cyber profits in the bar but to acutally give wine to other people on the outside…:eek:</p>

1093

<p>Happy move-in day to Garland’s D! :slight_smile: Sybbie, I saw Coppola in the back room playing cards with Pacino and Duvall, and he said that he’d give us a bottle of 1999 Cabernet Franc out of the trunk of his limo. Who says we don’t have class around this joint?! </p>

<p>And, Happy Official Launch to SBmom. :slight_smile: :::confetti:::: It gets a whole lot easier after about the fourth move and a couple of long holiday breaks. If there’s a b/f involved, even easier! Slackerbro stopped going soon after he realized that work was involved. Imagine something along the lines of slowing down just long enough to drop their sh** off on the sidewalk, laughing and waving your arms out the window, while trying not to screech your tires as you speed away. At least, that’s been our experience! ;)</p>

1094

<p>A little word from S is squeaking in now and then. Seems as if the first week (orientation etc.) is going well for him, and he’s putting up remarkably well with the disappointing news that he has to share a single with a roommate (at least for this semester). He’s taking it a <em>lot</em> better than I would have! (Must… try… not… to… complain while chatting w/him: I might think it’s commiserating but all it does is make him more eager to hang up or stop IM’ing…) Slowly I’m returning to functional… although I still need to learn how to cook for 2 rather than the 4 I’m used to.</p>

<p>I had a weird discovery today. When I remove my shirts, I always always do a careful maneuver where I pull them straight up without turning them inside-out, so as to leave them in the hamper in their normal orientation. Today when I was folding/hanging them after their dryer session, I discovered that Every. Single. Shirt. (except for one t-shirt: oddly enough the MIT t-shirt I wore to the airport when we waved him off last Sat.) were inside-out coming out of the dryer. Every single one. So now I’m going to do an experiment. This week I will pull my shirts off in such a way that I turn them inside-out for the hamper, and will see if they emerge from the dryer turned rightside-out.</p>

<p>Except for the MIT t-shirt, which appears to be bewitched.</p>

1095

<p>My D ended up sharing a single with a roomie too freshman year, and it really ticked me off. But I didn’t say a word, and she dealt with it just fine.</p>

1096

<p>Mootmon, what dorm did he end up in? Mine left today and called to let me know he was safely on “hallowed” ground. He was glad to be back.</p>

1097

<p>over30, he’s in EC. I’m guessing he’s not complaining 'cause at least he’s in the dorm he wanted, and he figures he’ll have lots of penalty points stored up for next year’s in-house rush.</p>

<p>That might not have made sense to anyone else, sorry – so now let’s pour some sangria and get back to drinking!</p>

1098

<p>I certainly understand. Because mine was in a single last year he didn’t get to move to the coveted rooms across the hall. Those went to those in doubles last year. He’s actually staying in his same room, which was used as a storage room over the summer, so his stuff is still in his closet. Glad yours is where he wants to be.</p>

<p>And I’ll gladly partake of some sangria.</p>

1099

<p>Moot: When you confronted your dryer about this, what did the dryer have to say for itself? Did it say that all of the other dryers were doing it? Did it say that it was your fault for using the wrong brand of detergent? Did it say that the hamper came up with the idea? </p>

<p>I’ve heard 'em all! :p</p>

1100

<p>No one is my family has ever put a shirt in our hamper right side out. CAn I borrow your dryer…please?</p>