Last for Dodge Ball.

Sitting outside today on my picnic table after picking
hydrangeas and black-eyed Susans from my yard.

Maybe it's just us ... but lately I feel like Nate and I are the dorks being picked last for Dodge Ball. When we moved from Kansas to Oregon, we suddenly found ourselves the "new" people in town, as the population is only 4,000. So, we didn't worry too much when we really didn't make "friends" right away. Nate was in college, and it's hard to find people to "hang out" with when you're just taking classes. I had started my job, and although I love my co-workers I am the youngest person there, the next closest being 38 with 2 kids almost out of highschool. After the first year we invited our neighbors over for dinner. They're an OK couple with a son that's only 5mo older than Maysen. They stayed over for about 1.5 hrs and then bolted. When we'd be outside, we'd say hi .. but what's with not returning the favor? I mean, not a "You'll have to come over next time" ... or "come over". Nothing. Immediately when you get married or become a couple, you suddenly have to find other friends who are "couples" ... and it's almost as though you have to start "dating" other couples as friends. So, when we were never invited back it's like reject-mode. What's wrong with us? It was that corny joke you told ... no it wasn't ... it was your cooking ... no! Then it's "Go to church to meet people". Well that's fine ... but what happens when I want to cuss? Then I sort of have to not really "be myself" - not because I cuss all the time, but I think I'd feel like under a microscope all the time. Well you get the picture.

Then we bought a house, and our new neighbors are pretty cool ... the kids are all close, it's a quiet cul-de-sac, would do anything for you, but everyone's sort of always to themselves. They pull up, get out, wave and down their garage doors go. What happened to BS'ing outside on the porch? The other day, Nate took one neighbor's dog back to them because it got in our backyard. The parents came home and Nate mentioned "Did your daughter tell you your dog was in our yard?" Didn't mean a dang thing by it, just an FYI ... and they acted like Nate was saying "Keep your damn dog in your yard!" Because ever since then, they won't even acknowledge us. They pull up and they look like the crash-test dummies - hands on the steering wheel, not a move made. It's like "Oh shoot, honey, those asses are outside - not a move!!! They won't notice that we don't notice them if we don't move". It's amazing what offense people can take over nothing. And the father/husband was coming out the other night. They had a new truck in the driveway. Me, being neighborly said "did you guys get a new truck?" As I started talking he became all rigid, NO EYE CONTACT, and said "Nope .... borrowed it" ... but the "borrowed it" part was said right as he shut the door behind him going inside. I stand holding the garden hose "What the hell?" I'm sure now that Nate is working at Weyerhaeuser he'll come across a couple to date!

I am, however, playing Bunko on Wednesday after work at Lana's, the radiologist's tech. I have no idea how to play, but I'm told it's really fun after a few drinks. And it includes yelling "BUNKO!" at the top of your lungs ... that'll be really fun after a couple of drinks.