Tuesday December 21 2010

1:17 p.m. I wake up.

Breakfast: Toasted Bagel with Peanut Butter. Orange Peach Mango Juice.

Adventures and errands with Mom.

Stopping by a little market stand on the side of the road. A little old black lady named Ruby’s been living here for almost 25 years. She’s over 70 years old and used to be a slammin preacher of a church back in the day. Mom tells me, “Isn’t she a memorable person? There’s something so precious about her.”

Eating Boiled Peanuts and Salt n Vinegar Chips with Avocado. Sharing Aloe Vera Mango Juice.

Strolling through the historic district of Plant City—exploring some Antique stores—sifting through all the different pieces of history. We could be here all day. One of the ladies lets me grab a few battered books for free including some British mystery novels, and a 70’s self-help book called How to Read a Person Like a Book. An excerpt: “This book is a handbook of types of nonverbal communication that will give you insights into significance of gestures—factors of ordinary experiences that are all too often only vaguely understood, if not entirely ignored…Our function as human beings is to increase our expertise and to become so human that we see ourselves in all other people.”

Something Mom often hears Teresa say when she’s dismayed: “Oh my lands!”

Stopping by Teresa and Pat’s place. Mariah and her friend Kaylen grab Mom and I to show us their clubhouse made out of metal bar fencing fully equipped with a white picket gate for the entrance, a pile of sticks for a chimney, and a water trough for a toilet.

Kaylen tries to guess my age, “18 or 16?” Do I really look that young?

Stretching and doing aerobic moves. Mariah attaches her hand on my shoulder as we run back in the house—she continues to pester me for Katy Perry’s phone number, which yesterday I claimed to have. I don’t.

Jimmy, Mom, and I drive to Wal-Mart for some baking supplies and groceries. On the way I’ve got the video camera recording from the back seat. Mom is completely embarrassed. “Stop!” Laughter and giggling.

In the parking lot.

Mom: “Ain’t this the food side?”

Jimmy: “No this ain’t the food side! The food side’s on the other side.”

Dinner: Sun Dried Tomato Chicken. Mashed Potatoes. Green Beans. Rolls.

Baking an Apple Streusel Pie from scratch. Mom assures me she knows how to separate an egg without an egg separator.

After preparing and baking the pie, Mom says, “That’s quite an ordeal.”

Enjoying two slices of Apple Pie with Coffee and Milk while we play a game of Rummy.

Reading.

Sleep 4 a.m.