Many Many Thanks To...

...the woman I met at the bar who was on a blind date. 

When my friend and I got to the bar, she was well into her third or fourth vodka something.  She slurred out some words about how nervous she was, then proceeded to give us her life story.  Something about marrying her high school boyfriend way too early in life, having some kids, and then 14 years later getting pregnant by a car salesman while she was trying to buy a car.   I saw the family pic...22 year old, 21 year old, 19 year old........5 year old.  She said her husband had been begging to have another baby, so he just accepted this love child as his own.  I assume it was at that point that she lost respect  for him, because she said shortly after the birth of the bouncing baby boy (who I wanted to ask if she named Buick or something...) she decided she was really bored with her husband and left him.  So there she was, on her very first blind date getting all liquored up and sharing her life story with two strangers sitting next to her.  She announced that she had always dated younger men, but was going older this time.  She also snorted really loud when she laughed and after we pointed this out, she instructed us to give her a nudge should she start doing that during her conversation with her blind date. 

The man finally arrived.  They talked, she snorted, we nudged, and she kept tossing back the vodkas.  Soon, she slid off her bar stool and announced that it was time for her to pee.  We pointed to the restrooms across the bar, and she looked confused and turned to her blind date (who would soon wish he were literally blind) with astonishment and said, "WHAT?  YOU AREN'T GOING TO TAKE ME TO THE BATHROOM?"  Right.  Because every man escorts his woman to the bathroom. 

They were gone a really long time.  Finally we saw them weaving and swaying their way back to their bar stools.  He helped her onto hers and cautiously sat down on his.  I imagine he was thinking about dashing for the front door at this point, but kudos to him for sticking it out.  She looked at us and very matter-of-factly, as if this was a regular occurrence in her life, stated that she had pissed herself and that blind date man had to take her underwear off for her.  She then flushed the underwear down the toilet. 

I have never been on a blind date, so I'm not sure if this woman just has no shame or if she is brilliant...as in "If this guy can pass this test and stick around, he's a keeper."  I am proud to say I have never pissed myself (at least not since I was a little girl and I still feel bad about my Strawberry Shortcake pajamas.)  They were still sitting at the bar, his arm around her, when we left that evening.  This man was either really desperate or he deserved an award for the most patient blind date ever.

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.....a Higher Power who has blessed a dear friend of mine with a baby in her belly.  She has been wanting this for years, and it just wasn't in the cards.  She suffered much grief, frustration, and anger over and over again about the unfairness of it all and the emptiness in her heart...emotions that are all too familiar to me.  I feel a rush of happiness that she has received this blessing and that things are progressing normally; the baby is healthy.  Sometimes we never know how, when, or why but I guess we just need to trust that there is a beautiful Plan for us all, even if it doesn't make sense to us at the moment.

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.....my boyfriend, who has asked me to be his wife and join his beautiful family.  I am both excited and terrified about this next stage of my life, but as long as they keep making alcohol, drunk women keep going on blind dates, and babies are handed out to deserving mothers, I think I'll be just fine.