Happy 4th of July to my fellow Americans!

Happy Birthday, William!

And most of all, Happy Anniversary to Tom and me. We met one year ago today at rackstraw's beach party. A year on, we're still going strong. I love you, sweetie.

Tom's gotten a new job! He's working for a company called CPU Repair, which - conveniently enough - is right across the street from my office!

I'm so happy. :-)

Tom just survived an attempted beat-down from a little old lady who was angry he got the last of the cherry Hamantaschen at the bagel shop.

I wanted to wait and not jinx anything, but I think it's in the clear now:

Today, after months of searching, Tom starts his second week as a full-time Tech Support/Salesman for Central Computer on Steven's Creek.

I'm so happy. :-)

Well, since I managed to tell my mother, I'm going to go ahead and announce this:

Tom moved in with me two weeks ago.

Was it fast? Hell yes, it was; I'm not going to deny that. But he'd been 'living' at my place since September, really. He almost never went to his apartment anymore. It made sense to make things official and split the rent.

I admit I was nervous. I'd never taken this step before. But honestly - it feels like the most natural thing in the world. I think I'd feel weird if he WASN'T there.

We're still working on fitting two people's stuff into a bedroom the size of a shoebox, but we're getting there. (He's giving me the kick in the butt I need to get organized.)

It's true he's still searching for employment (anyone know of a place looking to hire a good, smart tech support guy/electrician?), but I am in no way carrying him financially. Rent and bills are split three ways (since silentbob037 is still there, of course), and Tom does the bulk of the housework while he job-hunts during the day. Grocery shopping is split: I pay for my stuff, he pays for his, and we trade off on the communal items and on dinners out.

He also went with me to my dad's this weekend. Dad and Stepmom officially love him. (Stepmom gave me a thumbs-up and gushed about him. Dad said he was "worth waiting for.") Their dogs love him, too - and so, of course, does Mollie. It feels like we've been cohabiting for ages - in a good way.

In other words: We're happy. :-)

"When I look at you, I always want it to be as if it's the first and last time. First, so I'm always struck by you; last, so I never take you for granted."

Yesterday, Tom and I went to the "To Life!" Jewish street festival in Palo Alto. A choir that my mom belongs to was singing, so we went to hear her. Afterwards, we walked around the booths, and we realized something:

Tom is Irish and looks stereotypically Jewish (that's the Greek part of him); I am Jewish and look stereotypically Irish (still no idea where that came from).

Sign my sweetie is a keeper:

He cleaned my bathroom last night. :-)

("How I Spent My Weekend" post 3 of 4)

Sunday, I went with oracledante, silentbob037, and his girlfriend Kelly to the 30th Annual Gilroy Garlic Festival. It’s a legendary festival (at least locally), and I’ve never been before, so I figured it was worth checking out.

After a lengthy drive – which included a long and winding road to find the designated parking lot – we arrived just after 2:30.

Obviously, this being a garlic festival, the first thing we wanted to do was fend off vampires – er, I mean, the first thing we wanted to do was find the food booths. It was also a hot day, so we wanted liquid refreshment. Tom and I opted to get large glasses of triple-layer smoothies – strawberry, banana, and peach. Yum!

Then it was time to find lunch. Tom and I wandered the food booths before deciding on garlic steak tacos and garlic bread, both of which were heaven. Tom also had garlic corn, which he said was delicious. We did not partake in the festival’s famous garlic ice cream, even though they were giving out free samples. The line was way too long, and I admit I was a bit chicken.

By this time, we’d accidentally gotten separated from Richard (Kelly met us there later). Well, we all had cell phones. No big deal. Tom and I elected to wander the arts and crafts booths and see what all was for sale. There were some nice things, but nothing caught my eye … until I found this:


Why is this cupcake smiling?

( Answer in here )

The festival was smaller than I expected. We’d seen pretty much everything after less than two hours. Tom and I spent a good 45 minutes just relaxing in the shade of a tree, which was actually quite nice. :-) The last booth we stopped at was offering garlic bulbs for planting. Tom decided to try planting some in his front yard. Mmm, fresh garlic!

Around 5:00, we found Richard and Kelly, who were also pretty burnt out. We agreed it was just about going-home time. Since Kelly had driven separately, Richard went off with her. Tom and I shared a (non-garlic) sundae, then decided to head for the car. On the way out, I couldn’t resist purchasing a shirt that said “GARLIC WARS: Attack of the Cloves”. I should have possibly thought through the implications of wearing a shirt that says “May the Stink Be With You” on the back, though …

So, there you have it. A small festival, but a nice day spent with my sweetie. :-)

("How I Spent My Weekend" post 1 of 4)

Due to a scheduling conflict at our theater, we had our show on Friday instead of Saturday this weekend. Our cast and audience slow-dances in the aisles during "I'm Going Home". tarzxf took a photo of Tom and me during the dance:



Awww.