The Unexpected Prize

Have you ever bought a box of cereal and found an unexpected prize inside? I'm not talking about the box of cereal you bought just for the decoder ring or 3-D puzzle of Johnny Depp. No, I'm talking about the regular old box of cereal that you bought because it's what you like, and then one early morning as you pour your breakfast and barely keep it in the bowl because it's 6:30 and you just went to bed 5 hours ago, a really amazing toy falls out. Something you could actually use! Like a spoon with Indiana Jones or a necklace. There you are, just going about your business, and you get an awesome, completely unexpected prize. Pretty sweet!

Tonight was one of those nights for me. On Monday nights, my group of friends in our apartment complex gathers to drink wine and watch football. We usually go to one couples' apartment, but they needed a break this week so I volunteered to host. I sent out a great invitation (if I may say so myself), bought a bottle of wine, made bruschetta, lit candles, and washed the bathroom towels and rugs* Oh, and I even remembered to turn on the football game. We were ready to party! Ready for the hilarity and bonding and community that we experience every Monday night! Ready for wine and football!

One person showed up.

One.

I made enough bruschetta for 10 people.

But here's the best part: the one person that showed up? Yeah, it was the crush. Mr. "I've Known Him For 5 Months and He's So Not Into Me." And so we spent the next 2 hours watching the game and talking and drinking wine and beer and it was nice. When he left, it suddenly hit me what had just happened! I'd been wanting that moment for months and I finally got it! And you know what? It was nice, just nice. Not earth-shattering, not "omigod i'm inlovewithhim," not uncomfortable, not amazingly easy . . . just nice. And that's awesome! I can live with that. My little unexpected treat? I can use that. Use it to continue building our friendship. Use it to prove to myself that I am capable of being a normal human being around him.

And the best part was still to come: He left his keys ;-) So that means I got to chase him down and we talked a while longer. Almost as good as getting two prizes in your cereral box!!

*Word to the wise: Don't wash light green towels and red bath mats together, no matter how big a hurry you're in and how many times they've been washed before. At least I have an excuse to buy new towels.

An oatmeal day

Today was an oatmeal day. The weather is getting cooler here in my neck of the woods and this morning just called for a warm bowl of oatmeal. Trader Joe's organic oatmeal with blueberries did the trick. Then go figure, I went to my parents for dinner and we had oatmeal. Of course, this was REAL oatmeal, made in a pot, with maple syrup and butter. Because they can take the time to do that and eat it all. I can't imagine the mess I'd make trying to cook that and the week's worth of oatmeal I'd be left with.

Dear Cereal readers, I have a confession to make. Cereal Girl is a little drunk tonight. Not wasted-and- making-a-fool-of-herself drunk, just drank-several-glasses-of-wine-and-feeling-sleepy drunk. The kind of drunk that comes from sitting with friends in a warm house, talking about life and being silly, drinking cheap wine, eating cheese and fruit and watching football. The kind of drunk that makes you want to curl up in a ball at the end of the couch with a contented sigh and never leave, because you never want that moment to end. Single friends, married friends, friends in serious relationships - all of that nonsense is put aside for a few hours and we're just us. Just friends. Neighbors. A community. Moments like those are happening more frequently in my life lately. It's a good thing . . . and yet it leaves me wanting so much more.