A salute to Summer Reading and the staff holdin' it down

I mentioned in my last post that the roller coaster Summer Reading has pulled into the loading dock for the next 3 months, so strap yourselves in, keep all arms and legs inside the cart, and enjoy the ride. Or, at least try to keep what's left of your sanity. Or try not to gain any if you are lacking in that department.

Pretty much how everyone feels and looks at the end of the day.

For those of you unfamiliar with Summer Reading, it's basically free activities that the library sponsors for people of all ages to enjoy throughout the summer. It gives parents and guardians a chance to get the stir-crazy summer vacay kids out of the house and moving. There are crafts, story times, numerous animal-themed programs, robotics/coding, and a whole bunch more! Don't forget, it's FREE! Also, please keep in mind that summer is THE busiest time for the library, with occupancy nearly doubling our normal numbers every day. So, if you miss out on a program because it was full, it's okay. It's not the end of the world, and trust me when I say this, the library staff is bummed out too. We don't like to see sad faces or hear sad cries. The best way to make sure that you and/or your child will get into the next program is to get there early! Read through the entire calendar beforehand to find out if a program is only allowing a certain number of people in, or if there is an age limit. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to call your local library and ask. We want to you to come the programs, so we're going to help.

Here comes the thinly veiled not-so-friendly P.S.A. from the library worker:

Basically, we want you enjoy summer reading, and we know that there are a TON more kids and parents in the library so you are competing for tickets to get into the programs. But I will say this: If you don't get a ticket to a program, it is not the library's fault. We didn't hide them, we didn't skim a few for our friends, you just missed getting your ticket. Please do not throw a fit, yell, threaten to complain, etc.; because we've heard it all before. There is nothing we can do. We can't sneak you in or make an exception "just this one time." Trust me, when I say this, we've heard them all. So kindly stop badgering us. We don't want to here. 99% of the moms are extremely respectful and understanding, but there is always that one mom who is just an absolute raging bitch because her son couldn't get into pre-school storytime and that we need to adapt to the growing numbers over the summer (we do). Ugh. Please don't be that mom. Or dad. Or grandma. Or grandpa. Also, yes, we know it's louder in here, as there are 300% more kids in here. WE KNOW.

But seriously: Come to the lieberry! We have free shit! Your tax dollars pay for it, so take advantage!

The Incredible Saga of Middy and the Pork Chop.

Let's just open with this:

You're welcome.

Our story begins...

I love eating pork chops. I mean, I love pork in general, but I love me some pork chops. Especially when they're accompanied by rice & gravy and black eyed peas. Fun Fact: Rice and Gravy is my favorite food. It's a staple in Louisiana, and you'll be hard-pressed to find someone in Acadiana (Southwest Louisiana) who doesn't like it.

Literally every Cajun ever, when Maw-Maw or Momma makes Rice and Gravy. *Imagine that instead of Krabby Patties*

But back to the story. Ian is not a fan of certain pork cuts, like tenderloins or chops, but he'll eat bacon, sausage, and dumplings. He's from upstate New York, and Italian, so I feel like it's not his fault that he's a mutant. Long story short; I think I've had a ONE pork chop in the TWO years that we have been together. Let me repeat myself. ONE pork chop in TWO years. I miss eating them so much! They're so tasty! And they're usually served with my favorite food! I mean, I've had rice and gravy several times, so I'm not suffering from a drought in that department, but I'm missing my pork chops hella bad.

Then the most splendiferous thing happened...

I was out shopping with my mom, aunt, and uncle, when my mom stopped in the meat case and started looking at pork chops. She called me over and said. "Don't these look good? If I cook some on Monday, would you want some?!" I knew that she wasn't really asking if I wanted some, but that she was waiting to hear my reaction. Which was in true Middy fashion: "Hell yeah I'll eat some pork chops!" I was so excited that I was finally going to eat some chops. FINALLY.

My Aunt and Uncle were in town, so she cooked them this past Monday night. I work the late shift on Mondays, so Ian and I went over after work, visited with every one, as they were going back to Louisiana in the morning. I fixed myself a few containers of beans, a pork chop/gravy, and rice. I put them all in a bag and joyfully drove home knowing that I was going to make a pig out of myself during lunch the next day. We were also sent home with 2 gallon-sized bags of watermelon. Awwwwww yeah!

WATERMALONE!!!!

When we got home, I asked Ian to put away the food, which he did. I know that he had to make room for everything, because it's clean-out-the-fridge-time, and we were waiting until right before we move to clean. Anyhoo, we watched some tv, and went to bed. Ian was gone by 5:30 this morning, so I was left to my own devices in the morning. I showered, brushed my teeth, but my Summer Reading shirt on, and went into the kitchen to get my lunch. I. WAS. READY. I opened the door, pulled out one bag of watermelon to bring to work and started grab my containers, except they weren't where I thought they would be. So, I looked around some more. Nothing. Gone. I was like, "Where the fuck is my lunch?!?" I was pissed, because my food was gone. I turned around to walk away, and there it was. My bag of awesome deliciousness. ON THE COUNTER. HOT. UN-REFRIGERATED. Left out overnight. I literally went, "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOHO HO HO HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO." Utter heartbreak. I texted my mom, and Ian. All caps. There was a lot of visual shouting. I was so fucking upset. All I wanted was to eat some fucking pork chops. IS IT THAT FUCKING HARD TO DO?!?!? NO! It's not. But apparently, when I try, it is. Because it's me. No pork chop for Middy. Womp Womp.

This was me this morning

However, this story does have a happy ending. Luckily, my mom had ONE MORE EXTRA PORK CHOP, which I will be picking up as soon as I get off of work. I AM SO EXCITED TO EAT MY DAMN PORK CHOP.

fin.

Thoughts on a Saturday.

So, I know it's been a while since I've actually posted something for me, and to be honest, I was in a slump. Good 'ol depression strikes again. I was extremely stressed out at work because of a big inventory project that took 2 and a half months to complete. It was A LOT. And, Ian and I were in the process of finding, applying, and signing for an apartment. I was stuffed to my gills with stress. My anxiety was riding high, so most of the time, I stayed home and didn't go anywhere. Or talk to anyone. But, I am happy to announce that I finished the project and our move-in date is the near the end of June. Woo hoo! I'm extremely excited about our new place. I get a pantry! YAAASSSSS. I know that is a small thing, but it's a big thing to me! We just have a ton of cabinets at out current place, so everything has a spot. But still. Pantry. PAAANNNTTTRRRYYYYYY!!!!! But I digress...

Oh google search, you never let me down

I mean, I'm also getting a patio as well, which is HUGE, and I'm ecstatic about chillin' on that bad boy. It's also a 2 bedroom, which means Ian gets a WHOLE ROOM to himself to keep and display his collection. I'm going to attempt to decorate in an adult style, but let's be real for a minute; we know that's not going to happen. But I am going to half-ass it like the best of them. But I am really looking forward to a new location, a new environment, and mostly, a new home.

I found out a few days ago that my trip to Wisconsin for a library conference will be fully funded by library organizations, and I couldn't be more thrilled. I think this will a better conference than the last time, annnnd I get to go with one of my frands from my old branch!! Aww yiss. We're taking precautions this time to make sure that we don't get in Madison at 10 pm like I did the last time I went. I HAD TO TAKE THE BUS BECAUSE MY FLIGHT WAS CANCELLED. #firstworldproblems

The almighty Summer Reading Program is among us, and we're just wrapping up the first week today. For those of you that don't know what summer reading is like, take retail at Christmas, and that's summer for libraries. Yelling & screaming kids, angry & impatient parents, tired & exhausted workers, etc. IT'S THE SAME. Seriously, when I got home from work yesterday, I immediately laid down on the couch and fell asleep. Ian had to wake me up so that we could go out for dinner. So exhausted. The first week is one of the easiest ones too, because a lot of families opt to go on vacation the first week of summer. You always say that you're ready and to bring it the fuck on, but you're never fully ready. There's always something that happens, an extra 100 books get returned, you're down a worker, etc. All you can do is make the best of it and if you do, drink. But don't drink to the point of a hangover, because if you call in the next day, you're an asshole, and everyone will hate you for at least 2 days. Don't be that person.

When storytime has to be 20 ft away from the front desk because Art Camp is in the meeting room. NOT OKAY.

Thanks to a totally awesome coworker, I was inspired to read R.L. Stine books this summer. I already have a few in the bag, so I'll have to review them and get those posts up to y'all can experience your youth allll over again. I have been having a blast reading these; they're a quick read, and they have just enough humor and suspense to keep you going. One of my favorites is I saw you last night!. The cover is fantastic, and I'm 99% sure that I bought that one based on the cover alone. Who remembers B. Dalton bookstore? Once a month, my mom would take me to the mall so that I could go the B. Dalton's and buy new Goosebumps and other books. Awesome memories. I read one called Twisted, which I remember reading in bits and pieces because it belonged to my older cousins and I was a liiiittle to young to be reading about kids in college! I'll be sharing my thoughts about them soon. Well, as soon as I can grab a moment to write, because all we're doing right now is packing! Gah!

IT'S SO AMAZING AND I LOVE IT SO MUCH!!!!

Alrighty then, I think that's it for now! Hollah!