ten thousand dancing girls kicking cans 'cross the sky

i made a commitment to myself to write every couple of days and i have failed miserably. maybe it still counts if i think about writing every couple of days even if i don't make it there. many things have passed, including my 26th birthday. it was a good day to gain my "adult cred." my good friend midge spearheaded a lovely evening of sushi, dancing and beauty. i'm not sure what my portland experience would be without her. she tells me that i help make oregon feel like home for her, but i must insist that the feeling is mutual.

another piece of home found me today. i received my birthday package from my parents, albeit late. :) it's their way! included in said package was a t-shirt from Primo's, a family-owned restaurant in jackson that is a longstanding tradition in my family. it was always a treat for my grandmother to take my dad and my aunt when they were younger to eat there. that location they frequented has since burned, but another one reminiscent of the original opened several years ago. it was where k$ and i would meet our grandparents for a weekend lunch or go for dinner with our parents. they are known for their baked goods, especially the caramel cake that is too eggy for my palate. along with the t-shirt, they sent Mississippi cheese straws, "Southern Trash" snack mix, another flashlight (this one is a key chain. side note: my dad is obsessed with giving his kids flashlights. i swear i have about 37 now!), some crazy balm for dry hands (courtesy again of my handy dandy dad), an airplane that i will have to build at some point, and this:
my parents very carefully packed a petit-four from Primo's in the foil you see and only a bit of the icing got mussed. in the takeout box it was in was also that pink polka-dotted candle you see.

because they couldn't bring a cake to me, the cake brought THEM to me.

these are the days i remember that my parents really are rad.

and i remember what home is.