on saturday night i went out with some of my friends. we went out because after 8 years we've finally got in touch again with one of our girls from highschool who we havent seen since.
i always feel weird when i go out without my husband, but he wanted me to go, and i had a good time seeing my friends and catching up on eight years of news. i made pizza for dinner, and ate with my family before i went out, which was nice, and knowing that everyone had actually eaten decent food made me feel a little better
what made the night so interesting was noticing the ways we've all changed: P is all swanked (i'll be using 'swanky' a lot. it fits.) up, and set for a 6-figure salary before she turns 26 - probably not long after she turns 25 actually; SMC is a PR person, and just as quirky as ever; M is in the process of getting a divorce from a jerk/cheater, studying full time, and working 2 days a week in a refugee placement centre; and then theres me - married (with no signs of impending - or ever - divorce), with a kid, staying at home and cooking a lot.
the differences really hit me before we even got to our destination. SMC, P and i met up at the station and headed over to the bar where we were meeting M. hubby told me i looked beautiful (HOORAH for biased love struck husbands!!), but i couldnt help feeling a little out of place in my 8-year old shoes, target skirt and k-mart shirt (which shirt cost me all of about $7 HOORAH), when i saw P in what i
think i heard her say was a Louis Vuitton dress (shows how much i know about these things that i had to google it to see how to spell it), and brand new swanky shoes that i dont even want to think about how much they cost. and M in her quirky but stylish outfit, and again, fancy shoes. my friends are shoe people.
then when we actually GOT there.. well. P knows the manager. and the head chef. one of her friends knows them all too, and had rung up prior to say
please set up my friends with a good table, nice drinks etc, i will pay for it all later. just walking into the place i felt weird. it was all so... swanky.
we sat around for a few hours talking, and drinking, and eating. well. they were eating, i was full of pizza. i had 2 drinks (and two orange juices and a glass of water) over the course of about 5 hours, i think they had 2-3 bottles of champagne between them, a cocktail each, and a couple shots each. i dont like alcohol much.
and then, later in the night, P's friend came by with some of his friends, one of whom was an australian actor. like i said. swanky. P's friend knows EVERYONE. owners of bars and clubs. actors. politicians. people who Just Are Famous. but he is so nice. and at the end of the night, at about 2:30 in the morning when we all went home, he INSISTED on giving M and i money for taxis home. i had money in my wallet to get home, and M was nearly crying cause she was quite determined to catch a train, and she was a little drunk, but he insisted. its so nice to see that there are still people like that. P tells me he will bundle drunk girls he encounters in 'situations' (with not so friendly sounding guys) into taxis with some cash and instructions to the driver to take them where-ever they want to go. hes just
nice.
but the differences between me and my friends. they just hit me so hard.
i love to cook, i love to bake. and the best part about it is when my family tells me how much they enjoyed the food. cooking is no fun unless someone enjoys it. my friends are a little in awe of me i think. they cannot comprehend making pizza dough from scratch, or making a roast dinner with gravy that doesnt come as a powder. P came over on the critters birthday to give us a free pass to the zoo, and was greeted with homemade apple-cinamon muffins for breakfast. she looked shocked. she would probably have been shocked by yesterday's from scratch pancakes too. i suspect any pancakes she has come from cafes or mcdonalds. they cannot quite comprehend my life. but then, i cannot comprehend theirs, either.
P has been known to spend $2000 on underwear. and get less than 10 items. im sorry, but thats AT LEAST 100 items. she doesnt want kids any time soon, and plans on having MULTIPLE NANNIES on constant rotaion, to raise any she does eventually have. she may be kidding on the multiple part, but its hard to tell. her friend is a very generous guy, and has joked about giving her $25000 to spend in 25 minutes for her 25th birthday, with the stipulation that she cant buy One Big Thing, and if she goes over time, she has to return it all. M and i commented that we wouldnt even know where to begin to spend that kind of money. 3-4 cars? a house full of jewellry? i dont know. it makes my brain hurt thinking about it. but P has it all planned out already, knowing exactly where to go and what to buy, even though its a joke. i just cannot comprehend that kind of lifestyle.
all i really want is enough money to live on, and sometimes buy a 'fancy' thing or two (like actually owning a mobile phone, so i dont have to leave hubby phone-less when i go to the hairdresser, or go out with my friends every few months. thankyou my love), and have lots of kids (even though i know this last one is most likely never going to happen. i might one day convince hubby to let me have another child, but having more than 2 is extremely unlikely).
a lot of money would be nice, because money enables you to do things. i would love to have a large wad of cash fall into my lap and pay off my mother's mortgage for her. i would love to win the lottery and fix up the house, so mum doesnt have to worry about how she will afford to fix the holes in the kitchen floor under the 20year old lino. i would love to be able to afford to buy a part of mums house, knock it down and build a bigger one so we can all live here so mum's not lonely, but we still all have 'our own space'. i want to help people.
we are blessed to be in a non-dire situation. hubby's salary is lower than we would have liked, but he has a good opportunity to advance in his company, and living with my mother (which benefits us
and her), we dont really need more money at the moment. we have enough to cover our expenses, and then some. so i save like mad. and i feel bad every time we buy something that we dont really 'need', but will make our lives easier. (like a mobile for me, or hubby's new dvd drive for his computer. the one he has broke just outside of warranty, and he's been unable to use it since. he doesnt really
need a new one, but it sure will make our lives a lot easier than loading everything onto my computer, locating a flash drive, and transferring it to his in many tiny pieces.) and taxes should be back soon, which will give us an even larger chunk of cash in our bank account, and hopefully one day we will be able to do all the things i want to do.
it would be easier if i was earning a 6-figure salary, like P, but i dont want the lifestyle to go with it.
on saturday my mother gave my hubby a BBQ for christmas. yes, we are aware that its only october, but by the time christmas actually rolls round, BBQ season will be half over. (funny story. one time when we went to the states on holiday, my dad went to the chemist to get some asprin or something, and upon finding out he was from australia, the girl asked him 'when do they have christmas over there?' my overall impression of americans has improved a bit since then.... but not as much as id like.)
so yesterday, sunday, my husand spent the better part of the morning putting the BBQ together. with the help of our 3yr old. IT WAS SO CUTE. he just wanted to be out there helping his daddy so much... and except when he spilled EVERY SINGLE PIECE IN THE TOOLBOX, i think daddy enjoyed the help.
