Just wanted to say hi

It's been a while, hasn't it?

I gues s that's because I haven't had too much to report. Mostly I've been keeping a low profile....I guess I've been in need of extra energy conservation since some recent changes at work have left me without a manager and taking on extra responsibility yet again. And right before the start of final preparations for our biggest event of the year. Yeesh. It's not dire, I just know the next few weeks are going to be an intense slog. I'll get through it.....I was in a similar situation last year and rose to the occasion, but it's one of those things that sucks when you're in the thick of it.

I even took a few days off this week and last to just sleep and sort of gather my wits about me. Normally I do some traveling in early April, but that was not the case this year, though I did rent a car last weekend and treated myself to a Botanical Garden visit while the weather was nice. And I drove to my BFF Dawn's house way out in the sticks to watch Wrestlemania with her. WWE pay-per-view viewing was a tradition of ours back in college, and it was nice to repeat that, though with the difference of us also being in the company of her cats and her two young sons as well. The littlest one, who is also my godson, kept making eyes at me, which was adorable, and he tried to woo me by offering me his plastic T-Rex as a gift. He's gonna be a charmer when he grows up!

This weekend I returned to Bad Grammar Theater, which was fantastic, and today will probably be dedicated to errands and a bit of relaxing in order to mentally prepare for a day-long outing with my niece and nephew tomorrow. It's the niece's birthday, and as her gift, I'm taking her and her brother to see Shimmer, an all female wrestling promotion in Berwyn. I'm excited to introduce them to something I love so much, but they can be high energy, so I'm not sure how they're gonna take to sitting still and watching women play fight for 5 or 6 hours. In any case, I'm hopeful it will be received well. My goal is to give them the good role models of strong, athletic, super-hero-type women. They don't get much of that in their regular lives, and I think both could benefit from it.

I guess we'll see how things go! If anything interesting happens, I'll be sure to recap.

This was all over the place, wasn't it? I forget how to construct a coherent entry when I've been away too long!

One other thing.....

Is anyone else feeling trapped by this extended winter?

I know it's normal for a Chicago spring to be unpredictable, and maybe it would not be so bad if I had a car, but this perpetual cold is making me nuts! It's soooooo depressing!!!!

A written tribute to the niece, on her birthday

On this day eleven years ago, I entered the nursery of MacNeal Hospital in Berwyn, ready to lay eyes on my niece for the very first time. I will never forget that moment. One of my sister's little teenage friends trailed behind me, directing me toward the viewing window closest to her bassinet.

I seem to remember the little crib having a little white placard on its edge, with the name Seay hand-scrawled on it in blue ink. It's possible this was not there, and it's just my imagination filling in an extra detail.

One thing I know I definitely saw, though, was the completely bald, round-faced little girl sleeping on her back, eyes closed, and one arm stretched out to her side, completely relaxed. She was the spitting image of the newborn photo of her mother that had hung on the wall of the house we grew up in for many years.

Something seized me in that moment, and I remember standing there, speechless, feeling utterly captivated by this tiny miracle.

Behind me, Becky's little friend remarked, "You're falling in love with her." And though I rather resented her breaking the silence of that magic moment, I knew that she was absolutely right.

Today, that baby is now a young girl, almost as tall as me. She's spending her birthday with her mother, naturally. But tomorrow I get to play auntie, and my gift to her will be a day at the Berwyn Eagles Club, taking in an afternoon of women's wrestling at Shimmer. It will be her first time seeing women in the ring who aren't WWE Divas, and I'm hoping it will inspire her, and help her see that strong, badass women come in many different colors, shapes, and sizes.

In the meantime, Happy 11th Birthday, Melanie! Here's to our upcoming day of geekery!