Cassie's Journal - April 25, 2015

Rain put a damper on our day; but that didn’t keep us from having fun.

Since I was at Rowen’s house, Tai Chi was for one; her parents made pancakes and bacon for breakfast; and then Rowen and I were on clean-up duty while her parents went to the store early and Patrick and Scott moved on to Scot’s house for the rest of the day.  Rowen joined her parents at the store once we were ready to go too, and after I got home and did the quick update with Mom, Dad, and the twins; it was time to get to work on the chores around the house.  Not being able to work on outdoor chores meant that Dad just changed up his schedule and worked in the office instead; planning to work ahead on that and spend time on the chores whenever he can next week – probably in the evenings.

Michael helped out at the Inn with the breakfast and lunch shifts, so I didn’t see him until he stopped in to pick me up when it was time to go over to his aunt and uncle’s house to help out with Jessica’s birthday party.

Happy 11^th Birthday, Jessica!

The party wasn’t starting until mid-afternoon, but Michael and I helped his Aunt Sylvia out with the set up and a bit of kid and tween control when she needed to do a run for a few extra supplies.  We helped out with everything from decorating to making sure that the guest bedrooms were ready for Jessica’s friends to use overnight; so that was a couple of very busy hours.  While Jessica’s best friends, Lindsay and Geraldine, had come over early to hang out with her; the rest of her ‘friends’ guests started arriving at three-thirty.  Not all of them could come then; and as usual for weekend parties; it was mostly the farm kids that didn’t get to the house until after chores were done for the day.

From that point on through until dinner, Michael and I were split up while he mostly kept Ryan entertained and I was busy hanging out with the girls.  Our afternoon entertainment mostly included a lot of girl chat and music videos; though video gaming was an option that a couple of the girls chose; and I had some Barbie play time with Sophia and a couple of Jessica’s friends too when Sophia got bored with the non-action.  The talk time included lots of giggles and discussion of boys, and while most of the girls haven’t crossed over yet, one or two probably have; and it’s only a matter of time for the rest.  I was also more than a little entertained by the reaction some of Jessica’s friends had anytime Michael was around us, and while he pretended not to notice; it was obvious to me that he was aware of the girls that were crushing on him today.

That had nothing to do with how often I shared hugs and kisses with my boyfriend, but he didn’t have a problem with those cameo moments; and Jessica and her friends mostly had fun teasing us about it – even as they all thought it was romantic too.

Jessica’s Dad had been working all day, but he left one of his teen employees in charge of the station for a couple of hours and came home to get cleaned up for dinner before we all went over to the Inn for the special meal that he and Sylvia had set up with Jacob and Miranda for Jessica, her friends, and maybe half of their combined family.  It’s maybe a bit surprising, but I still feel surprised now and then by the close family relationships in our little town, and while I’m used to thinking about Michael’s family being the Stones and Bassetts; the other side of Jessica’s extended family is the Parkers.  There wasn’t time for me to hang out with everyone because Michael and I were kept busy with Jessica and her friends, and with Ryan and Sophia; but it still felt weird to have classmates and other members of the Parker family at a party for someone in Michael’s family.  Joshua was there with his family and Sally, and while we did have a little chat before sitting down for dinner; they sat with other cousins and adults for the meal while Michael and I were busy with kids and tweens at our table.

It was nice to be able to do that with Michael, since he would have been helping out in the kitchen if his parents had needed him; but our party group was about two-thirds of the entire late-dinner crowd; so they hadn’t needed him to pitch in.  Jacob and Miranda didn’t do a buffet for the party, but there was instead a special menu that only had a half-dozen options; including two kid meal choices.  That made it easier for Jacob and his crew.  That made short work of the ordering process for the servers too; so it wasn’t long before pre-chosen appetizers were delivered with drink orders; and the culinary part of our birthday adventure began.

The meal was great; Michael and I had fun with our dinner companions; and Jessica had an amazing birthday meal – with the last point being the most important.  Most of the kids and teens were ready for dessert within a half hour or so, and while the adults spent more time enjoying the food; Jessica bridged the time-gap by opening her gifts; and then we wrapped up our time at the Inn with the two-option cakes and four-option ice cream dessert once we’d all joined in for the birthday song.

Michael and I went back to Jessica’s house after that; I was again semi-chaperone with the girls; and Michael helped his aunt with more work around the house.  He and Ryan played some video games too, but the work came first – and included tough jobs like delivering snacks and drinks to a living room full of tween girls and enduring the giggles and grins that followed him while on the job.  The movie marathon started about a half hour after we got back to the house; and Jessica and her friends went with the full-on tween romance and musicals for their marathon theme.  While he didn’t hang out with us, Michael and I still had a bit of fun with that during one of his delivery visits when we joined in for the duet in-progress at the time in the movie and then wrapped that bit of fun up with a kiss and hug that had the girls giggling, whistling, and grinning at us.

The only thing that was missing from my really good day was any alone time with Michael.  As I expected, Ryan had started working on Michael to get rescued from the horror that was a tween girl sleepover; and Michael had agreed to that early – and they’d gotten permission from Sylvia for it too long before we’d even gone out to dinner.  Sophia only needed to give me the look and a happy smile to get my invitation, and we knew by dinnertime that not only had Mom approved her sleepover at our house, but Naomi had been added to the guest list; and Ethan had been set up for a sleepover at Aiden’s so that he didn’t have to be outnumbered four-to-one.

Michael and I stayed at the party until Jessica’s Dad got home from the gas station, and then, while Ryan and Sophia got ready to go; we helped out with getting the pizza snack part of the sleepover snacks cooking and the first batch served before heading out with our respective sleepover buddies.  Ryan pretended to gag and Sophia giggled at us when I kissed Michael goodnight and we both wished that he was taking me home instead of Ryan; but then it was back to girls-only fun for me for the rest of the night.  It was heading toward eleven by then, so when Sophia and I got home; Ehlana and Naomi were already changed and ready for bed – though ‘bed’ tonight meant the sectional sofa in the lounge.

The three younger girls wanted to get right to that, so they went on ahead without me so that I could have a little chat with Mom and Dad before joining them upstairs; and they already had their movie choice cued up by the time I got to the lounge.  I took care of the snack and drinks orders first; got changed; and then Sophia and I cuddled at one end of the sofa while Ehlana and Naomi were stretched out at the other end and middle of the sectional.  Sophia had already been tired out by then, and didn’t last through the first half of the movie, but I stayed cuddled with her until the end of the show; and then tucked her into that end of the sofa; kissed Ehlana and Naomi goodnight while they started another show that they didn’t expect to stay awake for long to watch; and came into my room to snuggle with one of my stuffies because Mandy decided to sleep with the three younger girls instead.

I’ve only done my email check tonight before getting to this report, and while I could do some work or studying; I’ve had enough for the day now too; so that’s it for tonight, and, until next time...

...May the Magi Force be with you!

Cassie's Journal - April 24, 2015

Congratulations to Natalie and Derrick Taylor – you’re pregnant!

That was the big news announcement around town today.  Natalie is pregnant with their second child, and I’m starting out my update today with the news because their baby is due in December; and will be a future classmate and possible playmate for Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne’s baby.  Maybe I should be writing about more of the kid connections this year because of my cousin, but then I didn’t do that for any of the others; and I’m sure that the friendships they develop will get into my reports now and then as they grow up – just as they have for Ethan and Ehlana.

Let’s get to my own report, and while there isn’t anything to write about on the level of new baby news; it has been a really good day – thanks mostly to the date night that Michael and Tim surprised Rowen and me with; and the sleepover I’m now doing with Rowen at her house tonight.

Before I get to that, my day started early with Tai Chi by the river, and though we’ve had a rainy day around here, that was off-and-on this morning; and outdoor exercising was an option at just the right time for us.  Michael stayed for breakfast before going on to his workout at the school with Tim and the other guys; so that was a nice bonus time with him too.

The rain was heading into the area by the time that Rowen and I went to school, and while that set a bit of a tone for the day; there were some timely breaks in the wet for us that allowed some outdoor time during lunch and for a while after school.  I don’t have anything exciting to write about from our classes, and the gossip network continues to be fairly quiet right now; so let’s move on to the date night fun that Michael and Tim waited until we were finished school for the week to surprise us with.

Our boyfriends had things to do first to get ready for our date night, so Rowen and I had time to get ready for it – and we decided on having a sleepover too while doing that; so we were at my house first while getting approval for the plan and then packing an overnight bag for me once we’d also picked out my date night outfit and spending some time doing our hair and make-up.  We made it to Tim’s house on-time, and the boys started us out with an appetizers and drinks ‘social hour’ before we sat down to an amazing dinner that Jacob had obviously helped the boys out with – at least for the entree.

Rowen and I, by the way, do not have a problem with our guys admitting that they aren’t world-class chefs; or that they didn’t pretend to be proficient cooks.  Michael did cook veggies to go with the main chicken dish, and he and Tim both took care of the last steps for the really great, stuffed and baked potatoes; so the meal was perfect.  So was the dinner conversation that didn’t once include even a mention of football or video games.  Rowen and I are sure that was also a suggestion for Tim from Michael, but Tim gets bonus points for actually pulling that off; since he rarely goes two solid hours without talking football.

Okay, Rowen, I’ll give you that point; but I’m never around when you’re giving him something else to do that he finds more interesting than football; and I have no intention of personally testing that assertion out with him. ;^)

Moving along, the amazing dinner was followed up with an equally impressive Olde Bakery dessert that we all loved; and then the boys took care of the clean-up while Rowen and I kept them company – and had the bonus entertainment of watching Tim doing one of his very least-favorite chores.  Rebecca and Michael are both sure to have other friends work part-time at the Inn over the next few years; but I am sure that Tim will not be one of them.  Since we did have the off-and-on rain in the on stage by the time the kitchen was cleaned up, we moved into the living room and got an early start to our movie night.

I hope it didn’t permanently damage Tim, but it was girls’ choice for our entertainment; and Rowen and I didn’t pick a single space, monster, or horror movie tonight.  Tim isn’t into musicals, but we chose the new version of Annie for our first flick and followed that up with a less-girly, but still girl-power action-romance that I won’t name; since it turned out to be a fairly forgettable show.  Maybe that’ll have changed in your ‘now’, but even chick flicks are not exempt from the really bad movie group that is so common for other genres – like sci-fi films.

Don’t go there, Tim.  I know that you love them, but be honest – pretty much every SyFy channel original movie is campy, terrible, or both; and there are probably thousands of other examples to back up my point.

At least for that second movie, Tim was able to join in for the fun when Rowen and I started making fun of the ongoing silliness that was too easy to pick on, and since there were lots of scenes with scantily-clad women; he probably enjoyed the movie more than we did – even with the bad lines and pathetic attempts at fight sequences.  I’ll try to cut the actresses and actors some slack on that, since maybe it’s not fair to mention that when most of their audience probably wouldn’t be able to tell the difference; but anyone with even a bit of martial arts training would have been able to tell just how ridiculously fake those fights were.  Then again, the camera work wasn’t that good either; so I could be wrong about that.  I’m fairly sure that you’re not supposed to show that a punch or kick missed the mark by a foot or two while filming those scenes.

Anyway, that’s enough beating up on the B-movie industry; so let’s move along.  We didn’t have time for a third movie, so we watched some music videos for a while and just relaxed and continued to cuddle in pairs.  Tim’s parents had been working at the showroom tonight and then went to Sheldon’s for wings and wedges once they’d closed up for the night; so we had the house to ourselves until they got home at eleven-thirty.  They joined us for the cuddling and chat time until Rowen and I needed to get home to her house, and since it was raining fairly hard by then; Tracey gave us a ride over there – after giving us time to say goodnight to our boyfriends first.

Patrick had Scott over for the night, and while they were still up and playing video games; we don’t have any problems with them anymore – even though they do still seem to feel the need to be at the house too whenever Rowen does have me over for a sleepover.  We had a short visit with them on our way up to bed; but they’re still gaming in the living room as I write this.  Rowen and I got changed and took turns in the bathroom; and we’ve been in bed and chatting while doing our usual sleepover computing.

That’s been a bit of work for me, and Rowen’s kept me entertained with YouTube videos of worst-ever dates mixed in with music video covers of varying degrees of good and bad.  I’d only planned on doing my usual computer and email checks, but some family business work was waiting for me, so since we were chatting anyway; I took care of it instead of leaving it for Sunday night.

It’s supposed to rain a lot on Saturday too, so my yard work might get re-scheduled, but I’ll still have chores, and Michael and I are booked to help out with Jessica’s birthday party in the afternoon; so I’d better start thinking about getting some sleep.  Rowen will be at the computer store tomorrow, and though she doesn’t have anything specifically booked for tomorrow afternoon or evening; I don’t expect to see her much once we split up after breakfast.  She is hoping for some alone time with Tim tomorrow night, and if I had to guess; there’s a better chance that’ll happen for them than for Michael and me.  Since Jessica is having a sleepover as part of her party; I’ll take a small leap and guess that Ryan and Sophia will be hoping that Michael and I will save them from the gang of tween girls that will be at their house – and we won’t be able to resist doing that for them.

Ehlana will be happy to help me out with that for Sophia, so my lack of alone time this weekend with my boyfriend will likely be due to Michael having a gaming night at his house with Ryan.  I’ll keep you posted on how that goes, but that’s all I have for tonight.  I’m going to put my computer away now, listen to the music that Rowen’s still playing on her computer, and probably fall asleep fairly soon; so, until next time...

...May the Magi Force be with you!

Cassie's Journal - April 23, 2015

I’m up late again tonight, but the good part of that is having the work and studying done for the week; and I’ll be ready to take the weekend off.

We’ve had a fairly nice day around here, and while the temperature is still a bit cooler compared to the warm we’ve been spoiled with earlier in the month; it was nice enough to be out and playing most of the day – and we even managed not to do our Tai Chi by the river without totally freezing this morning.

I don’t have all that much news to report even with all of the busy; and that’s mostly because it was a fairly standard Thursday for me.  In fact, the only change in the normal that I can think of right now is that Mom gave in to Miranda and teamed up with her again for game night and left Dad to hang out with Jacob instead.  That was entirely because Miranda had really, really wanted her game night Championship for the month; and Mom allowed herself to be bribed.

Dad got bribed too, but that’s between him and Mom; and I really don’t need to know the details – even though I’m pretending that I don’t to make that work. ;^)

As always, if you’re using your imagination on that, and know me in your ‘now’; don’t tell me!

Moving along, I had a good day at school, and while I rarely mention the actual work we’re doing in classes; I hope you understand that’s just because it isn’t news to me.  That doesn’t sound nice, but that ‘public’ education part of my life is all an act; so I hope you’ll take it as it’s meant.  I do love being allowed to grow up with friends my own age instead of doing an accelerated education the way that Mom did – especially since that would still be an act for me.  I don’t have to act at having fun with my friends, and while we did have a good day with that part of my life too; I don’t really have anything to write about with that either – unless you’d like yet another report on the usual food and football action from lunchtime.  There is a lull in the teen drama right now; and everyone is mostly pretty happy.

I went to the Inn with Michael after school; we did our homework together with Rebecca and Jenny; and then went for a walk down to the falls and back before getting to work in the kitchen for the not-very-busy dinner rush.  That was a fairly easy few hours of busy; I’ve already mentioned the only news from a lightly-attended game night; and then I went home with my family instead of waiting for Michael and his because Dad wanted to get to his homework for the night.

I’m sure his enthusiasm had a lot to do with Mom’s bribe; but let’s not go there again – some of us need to get some sleep!

Mom did my Magi lesson with me while letting Ethan and Ehlana do some work on their college assignments.  Tonight we did a long study about multi-tasking time phases with phase-shift transmutations.  Putting that into a nutshell; Mom is teaching me how to do both without hitting the wall literally – if you know what I mean.  Basically, it is possible to do a phase shift while in a time phase; but there are a lot of things to juggle at the same time for that to happen.  There would be a very noisy, painful splat if you got the mix wrong.

There’s a good chance that most Magi that can do a time phase even think about moving through open space while doing that, and we compensate for the pressures that apply subconsciously.  Doing that doesn’t change the fact that there are pressures – even when it’s only moving through air.  For those of you reading this that don’t have this talent; just think about it the same way you would about what you feel at higher speeds – whether that’s biking or in motorized vehicles of various types.  The higher the speed; the higher the forces applied on the objects involved.  A phase sift would actually mitigate those pressures in the air too; but we don’t do that because there are other, easier ways to protect ourselves and deal with that issue.

Doing the same with solid objects isn’t an option, and more difficult with liquids; so mixing the two is the best solution.  Of course, you might be wondering why you’d want to walk through solid objects more quickly than just using a phase-shift, and that’s a valid question; but my answer for right now is that I do it because I can and it’s seriously cool!  As for practical uses; all I can tell you is that there have apparently been times in the past when walking through walls without being seen doing it has been helpful to certain Magi Masters – or at least they thought that it was important when writing about it for the archives.

That little side-trip has me off-track; but I guess that lesson was one of the highlights of my day – though Mom’s journal on my Magi education has a lot more detail; and I like her perspective better than mine most of the time.  Getting back to the rest of my night, though, I took care of the bedtime routine with Ethan and Ehlana while Mom and Dad stayed in the office to finish up their work before coming up to bed too – and not going straight off to sleep.

I so need to book more Michael and me alone time!

Did I just write that out loud? ;^)

Anyway, I came up to my room once my brother and sister were tucked in for the night; got ready for bed; and then started working on my computer while Mandy curled up next to me and promptly fell asleep.  The family business work was a bit lighter than usual for a Thursday night, so I spent extra time on my language studies and then left my archive assignment for last in case I ran out of steam early.  That didn’t happen, but I’m worn out now; and ready for a few hours of down time.

I’ll be that Mom and Dad are worn out now too.

Cut that out, Proctor!

Since I’ve now devolved my mental state to the point where I’m writing a half-conversation with myself, I’d say it’s past-time to sleep; so I’m going to get right to that.

Until next time...

...May the Magi Force be with you!