It must be a New Year cause everyone keeps telling me that it is, and people are posting these long eloquent write ups about what kind of year they have had and their hopes and prayers for the aforementioned new year. I know I should be one of those people. The kind of wants to document the year prior, see if there is anything I can learn form it as I move into a new calendar but I just don’t have it in me this year.
I didn’t have a BAD year per say nor did I have a great year with things that stand out so that makes this process hard cause it feels like another wasted year. Let’s see the year started off with me battling a kidney stone, but I didn’t know it yet (cause I’m stubborn and don’t like doctors). Then my mother almost blead to death, which was super unpleasant. Mom’s emergency surgery took place not even a week after my kidney stone surgery so helping her recover while I was still recovering was a challenge, but she’s doing great so that’s a positive. She has like the smallest stomach in the world but she’s here and she cooked New Year’s Day lunch today, which was delicious, and for that I’m grateful. Then about a month or less after mom got out of the hospital my oldest nephew got married. Literally. Like from one massive activity to another in very quick succession. I broke his heart cause while mom was still in ICU he asked if she was going to make it to the wedding and I told him that was the least of my concerns at the moment. I meant what I said and I said it with my whole chest. My mom surviving was my entire focus at that moment and while I hate I broke his heart I’d do it again. She did in fact make it to the wedding, was dragged all over that church by the photographer and she never complained. She was exhausted and spent for the next 4 days but she watched the baby she helped raise (she kept him while his parents worked until he started school) walk down the aisle and get married. She had already made my dad and I promise that we would go even if she couldn’t and we had made plans incase she couldn’t go. Lucky it all worked out, but it was a very stressful Jan/Feb/March to say the least.
Oh and in the middle of all that I turned 44.
In April, I took my younger nephew and his friends to play Top Golf for the first time in Birmingham (the closest facility to where he lived) and we had a great time. I got to stay with my older nephew and his new bride (first houseguest for them), I got to spend a crapton of money on the nephew, and I had a really good time. It was a quick trip. Up on Friday, back on Sunday kind of trip but a good one. It was on that trip that I made a very important decision. See Golden was supposed to join us for Top Golf. However, her beloved Beetle … well blew up. Literally. As I am driving my parents van home (large enough to hold the group going to b’ham) I couldn’t stop thinking about Golden’s situation. See I have been watching a Hyundai Kona for years … I am going to say 4 or 5 (maybe longer) and I really really really really really wanted that car. However, my Hyundai Sonata was too good a car to just give up. I thought about trading it in but it was just too good of a car to even think about getting something else. So I waited. Every time I saw that car drive by tho I pointed it out. I loved that car. I had a very specific car in mind that I wanted tho. Hyundai Kona N Class Grey with grey interior, red accents, sport seats, and a sunroof. I must have built that car like a thousand times on their website only to back out cause I didn’t “need” a car. On that drive home it hit me ….. GOLDEN NEEDED A CAR …. I had a car … and I wanted a new car. The wheels started turning. I got home called Dad and immediately told him my plan. He said and I quote, “That’s a crazy reason to buy a car.” Then mom looked at him in disbelief and looked over at me and said “I think it sounds brilliant. You deserve this … do it.” I had been saving like a miser to get this car for a very long time. I had the budget to do it.
I usually get to work about 45 minutes early. Around here traffic can turn on you very quickly. 5 minutes on either side of the clock can cost you 15-20 minutes very easily. I’d rather be there early than risk being late. I used to go right in and get to work. Lately I’ve been sititng in my car playing on my phone for about 30-40 minutes then drag myself out of the car and into the building (I really gotta get out of that habit). On this day I used that time to do a search on the Hyundai website for my Hyundai. I found one yall….. like 30 minutes from Golden’s house. It was PERFECT! Like someone was telling me to do this for my friend. I filled in the information and asked someone to call me back. I had a call back in less than 2 hours. I spoke with the guy, we settled on some things and I explained what I was trying to do. I asked if he could hold it. He said yes but not long. See I still hadn’t talked to Golden. Maybe she doesn’t want my car. So, I hung up promising to give him an answer by the end of day. I texted Golden and asked if she had a few minutes to talk. She said sure is everything ok. I shut my door. I called her and I really believe she was in disbelief about what I was telling her. I basically told her that she could go out and buy something or I could do this, and she could have more time to get something she really wanted/liked as opposed to what was there. My car was a 2013 (bought in 2012) so it wasn’t like I was giving her a new car, but it was well cared for. It wasn’t going to last her forever but could last her another 3-5, maybe even 10 years. It wasn’t perfect it has some dings; the dash was cracking like crazy, paint was chipping in a few places but it was and is a good car. She really didn’t know what to say and I think she was afraid of getting her hopes up.
I got with dad, told him what the guy and I talked about, he suggested I counter with this other price, and I was like um ok… the guy said let him see what he could do. They countered and met us halfway. I was pleased. He was gonna get the paperwork going. I called Golden to say it was a Go. While we were on the phone the car guy beeped in. Another dealer had just sold MY CAR. I was devastated. I knew it was all coming together to easily. He tried to sell me on another and I said no it has to be that car, that set up, those colors that’s the car I want. That’s the car I’ve been dreaming about for years. He said let me see what I can do. I called Golden and we were both exhausted by this roller coaster. The dealer asked for me to give him until Lunch. I said ok. 10am … he calls. I found it, I don’t have it yet but I found it. I’ll call you back as soon as I have it. I said same car as yesterday he said yes. I’ll send you a picture as soon as I have it. I was confused by that but said ok. I called dad, I called Golden and I called the bank. I didn’t know how long it took to get a cashier’s check. Then I didn’t hear from him again until nearly 10 pm. I was like well there we go it was all too easy. Sigh. Golden was trying to figure out how to get to work the next day and I was sad. At 10 I get a text from the dealer. It was a picture of a car in a parking lot. It had just arrived from the swap me made with a dealer in TN. It was MY CAR, same color, same trim, same accessories as the one had and it was perfect. He said the next morning the guys would do the Hyundai inspection on it, and they could be driving to me by 10am. I was like wait the whole point is getting mine to Golden. He said due to all the trouble the dealer was willing to drive it down to me and drive my car back for Golden to pick up for free. I was like I’m sorry, what? For no additional money they were going to do that for me. I said let’s do it. He told me the total, I paid the deposit on my credit card, the rest by money order and I had purchased a car, mostly via text which blew my father’s mind. I called Golden and I tossed and turned all night. The next day was like a weird dream. I went to work, waiting for the bank to open so I could get the cashier’s check then came home and cleaned my Sonata like it had never been cleaned before. I almost cried when it left my driveway and prayed that the guy wouldn’t have any problems on the drive back I got my dream car and helped a friend out at the same time. We did the bill of sale stuff Golden sent me a check, I sent everything with the car so she could do the tag thing and to this day I’m afraid some glitch in the matrix happened cause it was all too smooth and perfect. I am still waiting for something to go wrong, even after all this time. It was a win win win and I was so very happy to do it. To this day it’s the coolest thing I’ve ever been able to do for a friend and while that was awesome, I can’t tell you how happy this car has made me. So, for me that’s my highlight of the year. I don’t know if I’ll ever top that nor will I try. Mighty, Golden's furbaby was very confused as to why my car was tehre but i was not.
In May, a month after the car swap, I drove to Golden’s to watch her niece graduate and to celebrate Golden’s birthday. We went to the zoo, a tradition I haven’t been able to participate in years, and I had a very lovely time. In Aug/Sept Golden and I made it back to Dragon Con for some much-needed time away, fun and laughter. We decided to venture north and found a really cool bookstore, which made for a nice relaxing drive to the con. Which was nice cause life was trying to suck the very life out of me and Golden and continues to do so. Golden's niece has just finished her first semester in college and seems to be doing really well there. I am very proud of her.
In October, my oldest nephew and his wife suffered a devastating heartbreak and while they are still dealing with the aftereffects of it, they are still intact as a couple and are going to come out of this stronger I truly believe that even if they don't yet.
In November, I started dealing with some more weird health issues. I used to have really high blood pressure but suddenly I have very low blood pressure. It runs in the family, and I am not a small girl, and I have a horrible diet. I'd tell you I'm going to work on that, but history says otherwise. However suddenly this year it started just dropping out of nowhere. I'm walking along and boom all dizzy and grabbing at walls about to pass out. I can hear my heartbeat, I can feel my heartbeat (sometimes it feels like it's about to leap out of my body...most of the time it feels like I'm on vibrate, or there is a techno show happening in the front yard). I haven’t taken my BP meds in over a month, and it keep bottoming out which is just crazy pants. I have been keeping a journal of my blood pressure since my last visit and have a follow up later this month. I think it’s stressing Golden out too. There really doesn’t seem to be a rhyme or reason for it. In December Golden had a very invasive sinus surgery which she is still recovering from. So when I say 2023 can go ….. I mean it can go and I’m ready for a New Year I’m just not optimistic that some of the 2023 crap won’t come with it.
So, consider this my year in recap I guess …….. and I didn’t even get into the work stuff which had its own drama and hell running through it but that’s another post … maybe.... or maybe I leave that in 2023.
I hope everyone has a great start to 2024 and that we all keep moving forward cause at the end of the day that’s all we can do.
Marcy
