Home!

I have been home for over a week, and no blogging as of yet. I just don't like to write about myself. But here goes:

Trip Home:
I took the 4am sketchy Shortline bus. Of course, it was even sketchier because it was at 4am. The bus driver came late. He stoppped at the Shortstop diner for coffee. He stopped at Ithaca bus terminal. People started leaving to buy their tickets (as it was Saturday, and the Student Agencies does not sell Saturday tickets there --- though I thankfully passed my own ticket as a Saturday ticker). The bus driver decided to not stay at the terminal because it would take too long for the oldest credit card machine in history to sell over 35 bus tickets to sleepy college kids and he did not want to wait. So he urged the kids back on the bus. We went to Bing. Then, there was a slight commotion between the bus drivers and the management who apparently did not like the fact that my driver left Ithaca without selling bus tickets. And then another bus driver wanted to go express to NYC, and so he wanted to move some luggage and passengers on another bus if they were going to a no-name town. Anyway, I slept for most of the ride and woke up the the NYC skyline. Sweet.

Sis came back on Monday.
Her birthday party on Saturday, Christmas Eve.
BUT before then: NYC TRANSIT STRIKE.

For real -- after weeks of talk of transit strike, it actually happened, it was for 3 days. Ma couldn't go to work. People walked over bridges to get to work. Cars had to carry 4 passengers to get below 96th Street before 11am. My cousin came and stayed with us for a few days since her high school is right near our nieghborhood and she couldn't take a bus to school. It was fun. We watched movies: Ek Khiladi Ek Haseena and Dus. Both had some twists like whoa.

We also decorated the house for the party with crepe paper and lanyard. We made a sort of tent-like structure with lanyard in the kitchen when we ran out of streamers. Oh, and we made a disco ball out of a balloon, cut-paper-circles, and glitter that I have had since the 8th grade.

So for the 18th birthday party---The neighbors and friends came over. G12 took all our food, but at least they were well-behaved. The twin girls came over. So cute when they sang Britney Spears songs. Aaje Nachle was the big hit, as usual. We played board games, watched dance songs, and oohed and ahhh over the beginning of our 1000 piece puzzle. OH, and really chocolate cake with strawberries. She got lovely gifts, and I even got some purple earrings! Fun times.

Since then, we have been working on the puzzle. We are almost done with the 1000 pieces. It is a scene of a lighthouse on a coast line. I worked on the water for over 2 hours yesterday. My back hurt, but I really accomplished a lot. We hope to finish it tonight before my cousins come by tomorrow. Shej is going to be so shocked to find that the puzzle that we started with her a week ago is now done! :::keeping my fingers crossed:::::