Yesterday, the day started off we me feeling like I was going to a Mafia sit down – a room heavy with the tension of people ready to kill each other. In the overall grand scheme of things the day went well. My guardian angel reminded me – “speak when spoken to”.

The morning started off with rain and hail, followed by a good laugh at Arby’s – proving that different parts of the country have different labels for their products. Kelley and I had spent the morning mythbusting. It was a real eye opener for both of us. I know we both have a lot of information to mull over.

We made it to the church that the graduation was held at about a half hour early – the place was filling up quickly. Steve and Debbie came in a little after we did. It was really nice to see them again and to talk to them. We kept watching for everyone else to arrive. Kelley was getting upset that they weren’t there yet. I was trying not to let anything upset me. The commencement exercises started and everyone was there before Megan got her diploma. She also graduated in the top 15% of her class.

Everything ended earlier than we had thought so everyone scrambled to change the reservations from 6PM to 4PM. It was originally set for 5PM – so even that would have needed to be changed. We went back to the hotel (as planned) so Megan could put on the special dress she bought for the dinner. We arrived “late” but it was Megan’s day and she was entitled. Arriving late rid us of the awkwardness of finding seats – the distance at the table spoke volumes.

This would be the first time I had seen Tiffany since her Thanksgiving visit. Kelley and I both didn’t recognize her at first – words can’t describe how wonderful she looked. Vanessa looked very happy with her 2 girls – it was good to see her again. The last time I “saw” her was when she was pregnant.

Again I only talked when spoken to – Debbie came down and chatted with me for a few minutes and the Steve did too. Jordan said thank you for the 50 cents I gave her to get a souvenir flattened penny. Rodney said a few words. Megan was ready to head back to the room. Kelley wanted to do a little shopping so she stayed behind with the rest of the group.

I held back the tears – they will probably come on the long drive back home. I sure it will make some of the attendees very pleased to know how hurt I am. My only question back – yes, it’s been almost 10 years – why aren’t YOU over it?

Megan’s big day has arrived. Yesterday went well but not quite as Megan had “planned”. We got Kelley from the airport and went to eat. Then we went to the hotel to see if we could get checked in. Fortunately we could. SO we get me settled into the room – Megan and Kelley head over to the ex’s apartment to get what Megan needs for the weekend. Poor Kelley didn’t realize that Megan packs like she is going to going away for months. Having to bring the guinea pig Lola, her cage and all her supplies take up quite a bit of room too. Getting her stuff into the hotel room was no easy feat either.

On a side note – it sounds like Megan’s plans to go to DC and stay with her dad for a while over the summer have been nixed because of the guinea pig – maybe someone else can get a better answer on that one. Megan was looking forward to going up to DC for a while.

The next phase was to get Megan’s uncle’s car back. Following Megan when she drives is scarier than riding with her. We drop the car off, get the tour of the place and head off. By this time Kelley and I were running out of steam – Kelley had been up since 3:30 AM – I woke up at 4:30AM – but I plan was to go over to Opry Mills. Kelley was surprised that OpryLand was gone and Megan never knew it existed. Megan wanted to go play mini-golf and see a movie. Kelley and I were having a good time just looking at everything. I know we spent over an hour because one of Megan’s friend’s wasn’t at work we were stopped in.

So now it’s after 4PM, we still need to go to WalMart, pick up Megan’s dress and eat while we are out. We make our way back to get the dress, the over to WalMart. After WalMart we stop off at an Arby’s to eat. Seems an interesting wreck had happened just a few minutes before we got there – we sat there eating trying to figure it out. From our viewpoint it looked like a hit and run. There is debris was scattered all down the center median for almost a half block. No one in the car we saw was hurt. When leaving Arby’s we saw the other car that was involved – it had wound up in a parking lot on the same side of the road we were on.

We found are way back to the hotel and walked down to the pool area to see what was available – didn’t really want to go swimming but the hot tub sure looked good. We hug out there for about a half hour and made our back to the room to get the chlorine off us.

All of us were happy to call it a day.

From Blogger:

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Wanted to get to this a few days ago but the painful truth kept getting in the way. Besides the upcoming Nationals tournament in Reno (followed by the San Francisco trip). I have finally been able to sign up for a coaching (re)certification – June 4. Now with all the realignment and consolidation finished – it’s now called Level I Certification. When I went through the class back in 94 it was YABA Coach Instructor. Yeah, I’m a little out of date.

I got involved in Youth Coaching so I could spend my time a little more constructively while daughter #1 was bowling. It was also at the same time Megan had first started bowling. Daughter #1 used to tell the story about how she was “born to bowl” – I got pregnant with daughter #1 at the beginning of a fall league. While I was pregnant with her I bowled 6 times a week (a couple of leagues and practice). She was born the last night of the league. I got a special trophy from the league – the “clown” award for bowling the whole season while pregnant. I stepped away from bowling for quite a few years until Daughter #1 started bowling. Daughter #2 tried it, but she wasn’t really interested in it.

When Daughter #1 was bowling I would drive her all over the place for tournaments. If some of the other kids bowling with her needed a ride I would take them too. Some of them even shared our hotel room. I have always enjoyed watching Daughter #1 bowl but knew it was something that would be better enjoyed from a distance. When we went to the tournaments I would always volunteer as a score keeper (but never for daughter #1′s lanes) it kept me near but not in her face. I remember one tournament – where she had one her match by 1 pin. I had already mentally done the math and started screaming “1 pin, 1 pin” – she told me she realized she had won because I was back there screaming.

I remember flying to Florida to the coast for a tournament – I took Daughter #2 with me. I was always going places with Daughter #1 so I thought it would be nice to take Daughter #2 with me to a tournament I was bowling in. When I rented the car, I requested a convertible for the two of us. How could you not have the top down while driving along the Florida coast?

Megan has long outgrown the PeeWee’s but I still coach them. They can wear you out but for the most part they are loads of fun.

There is some pretty good information out there on First Amendment Rights for Bloggers. Everything I have published is public information. The divorce agreement is a notarized legal document that is public record. The comments I have made are my feelings – my side of the story. I know that there are far worse things being said about me than I have ever published here.

Now just because my blog is on the internet doesn’t mean I have millions of visitors and those few people who do read this know of my situation. My husband reads it to keep up with what I’m thinking, my sister and Megan like to read it to see what’s going on in my life. So it’s not like the whole wide world is reading it. When I review the stats there are 3 locations my readers come from – Nashville, Woodbridge and Birmingham. Another item of note – the only last name I have ever used is my own. Heck, I can find more information about someone by doing a Zaba Search. If I want a little more info I can pay to get it. When referring to my ex – it’s either been “My ex” or “Megan’s father”. Employers can find out more about someone than what I have ever posted – background checks reveal much, much more.

I have been reminded that the truth is sometimes painful. Tell me what is not true here and I will publish a public apology and retract the comments.