It’s always nice to wake up without a hangover. I had a lot of stuff I wanted to do today as well, so being hungover wouldn’t have helped.

Lounged around at the Witch Cave for a while and had an easy morning. Natasha, Kate, and I discussed and confirmed our plans for this evening via text, since Natasha was arranging everything for Nicky’s birthday. I always wished I had an older sister.

Out of nowhere, Natasha then sprung it on us that her boyfriend, Konrad – whom we have still yet to meet, despite numerous opportunities – would not be joining us for dinner. Kate messaged me separately, expressing her annoyance at the news. I agreed with her.

Naturally, I spoke up and said something in our group chat about Konrad not coming. It doesn’t happen often, but Natasha got mad at me and told me to drop it. Natasha said that she and Konrad got in a fight last night, and that she didn’t want him at her sister’s birthday dinner. Hmm. Well, that was certainly reassuring, considering Natasha and Konrad are moving in together in June.

The summer Kate, Natasha, and I all turned 19, I was away in Florida on a student work program. When I returned to Toronto, I quickly found out that Natasha was not only dating a 32-year-old man, but she was living with him, too. Something about that situation didn’t sit well with me.

A few days after learning that news, I went to Natasha’s family home and spoke with her mother about the living situation. I felt it was inappropriate. As Natasha’s best friend since kindergarten, I wanted to voice that concern. What I learned – or perhaps confirmed – that day with Natasha’s mother, was that there’s no reasoning with Natasha. The girl is intensely stubborn. It’s one of her best and worst qualities.

Natasha’s mother told me that there was no changing her daughter’s mind. When Natasha isn’t having fun anymore, she’ll make a change to end things. But, until then, it’s Natasha’s way or the highway. You’ve just got to get out of the way and let things run their course. I wish Natasha would let me in a bit more, but it is what it is.

At the end of the day, I do respect Natasha for always making her own decisions – regardless of what others may think. For the record, though, Natasha broke up with that guy a week after I spoke to her mother. Natasha told me later that she cried when her mom told her about my visit, and thanked me for reaching out the way I did. I love Natasha with all my heart. I only ever want what’s best for her.

After relaxing in bed for most of the morning, I left my apartment and began an errand walk in what I thought was a very cute outfit. Of course, the motorcycle boots I opted to stomp around in eventually blistered my feet beyond repair, but they sure looked good as I managed to:

Drop off some mail at the Post Office
Purchase a new gym bag at Lululemon
Pick up Mom’s gift for Mother’s Day – another Chelsea Handler book for her (read: our) collection
Have a new Mariah Carey “Loverboy” t-shirt made

After all of that, and a full workout at the gym, I walked back to the Witch Cave. I was absolutely exhausted. I was also starving, so I made some food and then took a nap. A couple of hours later, I woke up and started drinking while getting ready for Nicky’s birthday dinner. I polished off about half a bottle of wine and a few tequila shots before I even left my apartment, and somehow ended up being about 40-minutes late to dinner. I blame that damn Queen Street West streetcar.

Dinner was great. It was Natasha, her sister Nicky, Kate, her two younger sisters Emma and Olivia, and myself. It became clear early on that the group was not going to be going out afterwards, but we all had a good time at the restaurant. We closed the place down around 11 p.m.

I find it funny how Kate and Natasha’s sisters are now involved in our group get-togethers. It seems natural. It’s weird how those things change with age, too. When we were younger, there was no way we would want our kid siblings involved in our social lives like that. I wish Phillip and I had that sort of relationship, but we don’t see much of one another outside of Casa Z. It’s unfortunate.

Naturally, I was wasted during dinner. I also brought a flask of tequila to the restaurant. I was seated next to Nicky, and continued to spike our margaritas throughout the night. It’s called being economical, okay?

Oh, I also wore my Hawaiian shirt tonight. Apart from my zit-ridden mug, I thought I looked half decent. I’m weaning myself off of my Clearasil acne medication, which I have been using for the past decade, and my skin is mad at me. I think it’s for the best, though. Due to the full-out war zone happening on my face, I was wearing makeup to help myself from looking like a haggard troll. It worked.

Kate was the DD tonight for all of the girls, so she dropped me off at the Witch Cave before taking everyone back up north.

I wonder if the girls want to live downtown? Some people just don’t want a city life, I guess. Meanwhile, I find myself extremely bored with Toronto. It’s so dull. Nothing is new or exciting anymore. It’s really been bothering me lately. I think about moving to Europe a lot, actually. Or maybe even Vancouver, but I don’t know if I could handle that much rain. I’d have to visit first.

I think what the problem is, is that most people I know either never visited Toronto as a kid, or they lived hours away. Thus, when they moved to the city as an adult, the change of scenery was an exciting, new experience for them. They got a chance to really be out of their comfort zone and create a new life for themselves. I never had that opportunity. For God’s sake, I’m still up at Casa Z half the week. Not to mention the fact that I was downtown all the time growing up. Living downtown is obviously better than being up in the boonies of Casa Z, but it’s not exactly a culture shock. I’m bored. I’m trapped, and I’m bored.

Speaking of Vancouver, when I got back to the Witch Cave tonight, I was pretty drunk. I wanted to go out, but it was becoming clear that my options were: A) go to a rave at Fly nightclub for Connor’s birthday with the whole crew who was already there, or B) trek back out to Queen West and go to a bar with people I don’t know that well. Considering Fly gives me major anxiety, and I didn’t have an hour to spare for another ride on the streetcar, I stayed home. Much to my surprise, I actually ended up spending an hour on the phone with Naomi. She was stuck at the Vancouver airport, because she missed her flight – to Toronto!

Naomi and I talked about everything. Especially boys. Naomi was just brutally dumped by a guy she really liked without any reasoning. Sound familiar? Damn. Seems to be the trend these days. We talked about Naomi’s situation, swapped stories, and had a great chat. I would love it if Naomi moved to Toronto. She’s exactly the type of excitement I want in my life. We always have a great time together. I really want to try and go to Palm Springs with her for my birthday. We’ll see. It’s just a thought at this point.

I said goodbye to Naomi, and turned off the lights.

Goodnight xo