Y’all! Today is the first day in a week and a half that nobody is coming to do any work on my house! I’m not necessarily happy about it….I was supposed to be getting my new floors put in today and it was going to be the end of this nightmare but THEY had to reschedule!! Ugh! So the nightmare continues! (As I write this I remember I have a friend coming after work tonight to finish up a few things but that doesn’t count….I still don’t have to get a shower!) I realize this isn’t a fun rant so we’ll move on….

I was taking my son to school today (I’m not supposed to mention him so we won’t use his name…😉) and as always he is playing HIS music. This is the second kid….I learned a little bit from the first one. They listen to rap! I HATE Rap! Don’t get me wrong….I prefer it to classical or opera but that’s about it! I just don’t understand half of what they say and when I do it makes absolutely no sense to me! It also drives me crazy that half of it is bragging about how much money they have and how valuable their jewelry/cars/etc are! My husband and I told the kids…..if we ever win the lottery, we’re not tellin y’all! EVER! Ya might see and extra vacation or two but that’s it…then when you’re both 18 we’ll just disappear! We may have said this too many times because I’m pretty sure at least one of them thinks we’ve already won the lottery and we’re just not telling him! I also don’t understand these middle class preppy kids relating to the lyrics! Now I do understand liking the beat! I have to give them that…that’s the only thing I understand about it! So back to this morning…..I’m accidentally listening to this song and it says something about Tony Danza! What the what?? I think it said he was dancing on a table or a counter or something! Huh??

Me: Do you know who Tony Danza is?

Kid: No…….Do you know who Tony Danza is?

Me: Yeah…..he was an actor when I was a kid!

Kid: Was he any good?

Me: Sure I guess but I’m not sure he was good enough to be mentioned in a rap song 30 years later!!

Kid: what?

Me: That dude just said something about Tony Danza dancing on a table or something!!

Kid: Oh I never heard him say Tony Danza and I don’t know who that is….

WHY????? Why are we rapping about 80’s actors and why don’t the kids know what we’re rapping about and why do I know more about the song I hate than the kid who wanted to listen to it?? Hey…but I gotta recommend this Young Dumb and Broke song….that one I can get down with! 😂

So I drop the kid at school and turn the radio to my fav 90’s station and New Kids on the Block is playing!! Step by Step! I jam out on the way home and realize it’s about the stupidest song I have ever heard!!!! 😂😂 So I guess I’m just gonna have to rap about Tony Danza and shut up about it!!

I got dis! Tony Danza on the table whoop whoop!

In other news….we had to get a new DVR a while back and apparently somebody “accidentally” forgot to set it up to record This is Us!! 😡 I’m a little technologically challenged so I just recently figured out how to get all the episodes so I can watch them! I’m talkin a whole season people! And y’all are takin about how jack died and I know NOTHING!! It’s painful! So I’m all about catching up on this show and my hubby of course doesn’t love it so I ask (not really expecting him to have an opinion) if he minds if I watch the show. He says, “I really prefer you don’t….I just can’t handle you crying…”

Manny say whaaattt????

OK….we’re gonna do a little side step here! I recently started therapy (y’all are welcome!). I spend a full hour catching up on years of neglected crying once a week! This probably has absolutely nothing to do with my husband….but he just caused himself to be blamed!! Cause I know he can’t handle me crying….the kids can’t either, by the way! So I try really hard not to! But I didn’t think TV shows counted!! Does that count?? I mean I understand ya don’t wanna deal with me crying cause somebody died or because I’m frustrated (such as recent house work), or because I’m disappointed in you etc etc etc…..but when you know darn well that I’m crying over a show that has absolutely nothing to do with you or us or anyone we care about then I think you should be able to eat your food or play your phone games or whatever ya got going on and ignore me crying! I ain’t asking for a hug! I just want Jack to be ok because he’s an awesome husband and dad and I bet he would let his wife watch This is Us if she really wanted to!! OK now that rant is over….back to therapy! (I gave y’all a couple days off so you’re gonna have to let me catch up!)

My “Homework” for therapy the first week was to write a letter to my mom! (Who is no longer living in case ya didn’t know) The reason behind this assignment is that I may have just a tad of resentment towards her for ruining my life and killing my uncle! I mean just a twinge of anger there! Nothing too major….. Well I’m approaching session 3 of therapy and I haven’t written this letter! As y’all can see, I don’t really have a problem with writing….nope…that’s not the issue here. A small part of the issue is that I haven’t had a day alone since the assignment….at least not until today and I have big plans for today!! (THIS IS US!) So here in lies the problem…..she scares the hell out of me!! I mean I feel like if I wasn’t scared to tell her what I think then I woulda told her while she was alive!! I’m assuming the theory is that since she’s gone then it’s safe for me to say what I want but I think this therapist is dead wrong!! I just started thinking about some of the things I would say last night and the TV started changing channels by itself!! I mean…..I don’t think I wanna mess with her! Typing this is probably a bad idea! And exactly how does that help me with her cause there’s plenty of other people I’d like to say a few things to also!! Is that gonna be my coping mechanism? Like….you just wait…..I’m gonna outlive you and then write you a letter and tell you exactly what I think!! You just wait and see!! I’m just not sure how therapeutic that is….. I guess we’ll find out! If y’all hear about some chick in the south dying suspiciously then we’ll know the letter was a bad idea!

OK y’all….I’ve got to watch an entire season of This is Us before my husband gets off work so that’s the end of my rant for today! Y’all have a magical day!!

Things got a little hectic yesterday with the Eagles WINNING THE SUPER BOWL and all…..I don’t know if y’all are aware of this, but they couldn’t have done it without me!! Here’s why:

I saw this picture posted a few days before the game and vowed that I would do the eye makeup for the game. I have minimal makeup experience…there have been previous posts where people tried to help but there really is no help…..So this picture is the goal!

I managed to apply the normal stuff which I perfected in my last makeup attempt….totally not true but this was the primer, paint, powder, blush, and eyebrow pencil step….

This started getting a little scary pretty quickly!

They have this sparkly stuff….I have no idea what it’s for but I freakin love it!!

And then things got darker…

And darker…

And darker…….

And yeah….No! This isn’t gonna work!!

ROUND 2!!!! (Notice the eyes are redder!! Ouch!)

I don’t know…maybe??

The wings on each side go in different directions!! 😂😂

OK so if we add a little sparkle…maybe…

Yup…We’re gonna roll with this! 😂

OK now that that’s done….gotta get the Eagle out! HE’s ready to cheer!

Oh wait! Not quite game time yet….family time! We’re gonna assemble a jet engine real quick before the Super Bowl!

Can you see how much this child loves having his picture taken?? Sometimes I get tired of him posing for pics all the time! 😂

This is unreal!! Thank God I’m just the gofer!!

💩 gettin real up in here!

I wanna brag on his building abilities but all I can think is….Let’s clean those finger nails!!

OK now all he has to do is put together the things that he put together!!

Look at me holdin stuff!! I don’t know what he’d do without me!!

And it’s done!! Lightening speed jet engine!! Except it’s totally not lightening speed!! What the heck??

OK back to the Eagles!! My husband was so excited about my eagles eyes!! I mean just look at his face!!

OK I got my spot in the chair with my Eagle and I’m ready to get this thing started! Well….actually this is after a trip to zaxby’s where I got some funny looks but they just didn’t know the importance of the eagles eyes!

Even my son is excited to be seen with me!!! Or maybe I bribed him with fries….same difference!

And thanks to my eagles eyes and my eagle pillow pet….the EAGLES WON!! Y’all are welcome!!

The joy and excitement overwhelmed me to the point of green tears!! 😂😂

FLY EAGLES FLY!!!

 

Im afraid the videos aren’t working correctly…I’m sorry!

This house project nightmare continues! My friends came back today to work on the bathroom again and at one point said it would be done today. My heart filled with happiness! I’m pretty sure there were some little birds flying around doing the dishes and butterflies making the bed….it was a magical moment! Now “done” did not mean everything would be back to normal. “Done” meant that there would no longer be a mirror and double sink in my narrow hallway and the cabinet pieces that are littering my bedroom would be back in the bathroom. My little brain took things even farther though! (This happens frequently and gets me in trouble!) In my “mind’s eye” I could picture the toilet being back in place and all of the toiletries etc that are currently stacked in my tub would be back in the cabinet and I could just lay some towels on the floor and basically use my bathroom as normal until Wednesday when they put the new vinyl on the floors. Actually, I even went a step past that and thought I would hook up my washer and dryer long enough to do a few loads of clothes and then take them back out of the room and all would be well with the world! I might even soak in the tub while the clothes are washing! In my mind’s eye the world was about to be a better place!

Then it happened…..I got called back to look at the bathroom. “Do you want the good news first or the bad news?” Nope! None! I can’t! So he had installed the toilet for me which he seemed rather proud of and rightfully so….that was above and beyond what was discussed originally. However, that was followed up with the fact that all the holes that the other idiots left in the walls had to be patched and because they were so bad, it was gonna take 3 applications to patch them before the cabinet and sink could go back!! 😲 That pushed my little fantasy world (which only I was aware of) back DAYS!! DAYS!! ……and then I lost it! I started crying…like a crazy person…crap like ya see happen in movies! The chick gets overwhelmed and cries over stupid crap…yup…that’s what I did!! I had zero control over it! I DESPISE crying! I wish it wasn’t even possible! I wish there was just a button you pushed when things got too overwhelming and a little steam would release and then ya go on with your day without looking like an idiot! Actually I think I’m gonna run that idea by my Dr at my next appt…see if I can get one of those buttons installed!

That wasn’t the end of the story either! Nope…there is more crazy! I had been making plans with some friends to go out to eat together and have some drinks etc. AND we were taking a fun, cool (as cool as a short bus can be) bus together that one of my friends owns! Yay! Fun night out! Been looking forward to this for a while….well….I was so bummed about the bathroom that I could barely even consider getting up and showered and ready to go but I was trying to push myself! I thought if I could just get my butt up and going then I would get out and be laughing with my friends and have a few drinks and have a blast! Then I see a comment in our group text that makes me realize that we probably aren’t going where I thought we were going. (Again my brain just made up something that wasn’t real!) There is one restaurant that makes piña coladas that I LOVE! And they are potent! I was picturing one of those drinks and then me just calming down finally. Well…we were going to another restaurant that makes terrible piña coladas! Great food..:but not piña coladas! (I’m sure there will be a blog dedicated to this but those who do not yet know:…..I am an insanely picky eater and I rarely drink so I guess I’m picky about that too!) No big deal! Right? I mean a shot is a shot….I could just go and have enough shots till I didn’t care what the piña colada tasted like! Great plan…..and then I lost it AGAIN!! I am sitting home crying because we aren’t going to the restaurant I thought we were going to!!! Are you kidding me?? Where is that steam button?? This crap is getting out of hand!! So I don’t go…I mean who wants to plan a fun night out and have someone there crying every time someone speaks?? It was absolutely ridiculous!

Ya know there was a point in my life when I couldn’t cry….I kid you not! It was 2013 as a matter of fact. I remember because my aunt had a pretty bad stroke and I was at the hospital with my grandparents waiting to see what was going on with her. My grandfather’s Alzheimer’s was already pretty bad at the time and my grandmother (who raised me) was devastated…..crying because she didn’t know if her child was going to live or die while her husband was confused about where he was and what was going on. It was a pretty bad scene. This is the same grandmother who usually had me balling if I even suspected that she was going to cry and I was sitting there doing NOTHING! Not one single tear! I even remember explaining to her that I couldn’t cry anymore because I felt like she thought I didn’t care.

Now if someone could please explain to me how I went from not crying during that devastating scene to balling because we’re going to a different Mexican restaurant than I thought….I would love to hear your ideas!

Aren’t y’all glad I decided to have a funny blog? 😂 Oh my goodness….I guess I’m just going with whatever comes up each day so who knows where this is going!

Newton’s law was in overdrive this week! Good gravy!! So what had happened was….the hubby discovered a soft spot in the bathroom floor. Before it was repaired, the washing machine broke! As I was cleaning out the laundry room for a new washer, I almost fell through the laundry room floor! Awesome sauce! So I assume I have some kind of leak rotting the floors and I’m spastic trying to find a plumber/carpenter ASAP! I turn to Facebook and am offered a name. I call and set up for this man to come out and see what’s going on with the floor and leak. Well there is no leak (this will be the end of the god news!) Turns out that the A/C vents are causing the damage. One because it wasn’t installed correctly 18 years ago and the other cause I may have possibly put tape over it causing the air to blow under the vinyl…:(don’t judge me)!

That was all last week…Monday repairs began. However, the man showed up with no crew or tools or anything and a half an hour late. He talked about having people on the way and all the people he’s related to and that he’s done with women. Seems he kicked his girlfriend out 3 weeks ago. Told her he would give her $1000 to get out that night…:she thought he was kidding but oh no no no! He was dead serious! I’m guessing this is that point at which normal people would have kicked him out and started looking for someone else…..not me! Nope…I just figured we bonded a little. The crew showed up finally! Yay! It was a man and his wife lookin mighty rough. The man was missing all of his front teeth, or at least they were down to numbs and the wife wasn’t lookin much better! So I started frantically googling explanations for their appearance other than drugs…..I don’t know why….google is, more often than not, very cruel to me! I guess I should just be happy it didn’t say that I was gonna die due to their teeth! Is this the point at which I decided to pull the plug on this project??? Oh no….cause we don’t wanna be judgmental!

Floors are being torn out…plumbing is being removed….I have no clue if things are being done right or not so I just keep my distance! (Also google may have said the teeth could kill me!) A little later in the day I hear what sounds like an open fire hydrant in my bathroom!! I hear someone running and I refuse to go look! Guy runs out to the road to turn the water off BUT he forgot to take any tools, so he had to come back into the house for tools and go back out to the road again. This whole time water is gushing in my bathroom! I give the woman a stack of towels to clean up the water and shortly later I see wet spots in the laundry room!! (A wall adjoins the two rooms) I bring this to their attention and I’m told that it was already like that or somehow was not related because the leak wasn’t that bad!

Maybe someone mistook the dryer vent for a urinal then?? I’m not sure what else could have happened! I mean I did have multiple strangers in and out of my home so maybe one of them did sneak in the laundry room for a potty break….whatever! That’s the majority of the excitement for Monday.

Tuesday all of this fun continues! Late showing up, strangers visiting the house, nobody has visited the dentist, etc etc etc. Well I had to go to a ballgame that night and my husband was gonna be home shortly after I left so I went. Now I had asked them to replace a door before I realized what I was dealing with….This man calls me and says they are done for the day and they did everything except this, that, and the other…..one of the others was the deadbolt on the door!!! I said you left the dead bolt off for the night??? He said yeah did you want that done? Well….let’s think about this for a min….you’re asking if I would like to leave a 3″ hole in my door over night while we sleep and it’s like 5 degrees outside! Ummm nah….I think I’d like to have the dead bolt put on before you leave!! (What is wrong with people??)

Wednesday…..Finally they are finished! Woohoo! Well, except part of the sink that was broken and the board that goes in front of the vanity and the fact that the floor is completely uneven and they have destroyed the walls!!

Deep breaths Michelle! Just pay the man and get him out of your house along with his sketchy crew and move on with your life!! You can do it!

Thursday we took a breather and Friday (today) some friends came over to access the damage and hopefully fix it! Let me share some of this adventure with y’all!Here you will see the damaged walls, missing stopper parts on the sink, and a tile knocked loose.Then after my friends came to assess the problem….The whole floor had to be torn back up and replaced because they used the wrong size plywood to match the old floor.The whole sink and cabinet had to come back out to get to the flooring that had to be replaced!Apparently….if you are installing cabinets in a bathroom and you can’t make it fit back like it should….you can just carve a whole in the wall to make space for it!! Never even would have thought to do that!!They apparently choose liquid nails to put the ends of the sink back on!! That made taking it back out so much easier!!!The fun shall continue tomorrow! Yay! So far it’s cost $400 in parts alone to fix what they messed up….and it’s nowhere near done!!Y’all I can’t…..I’m seriously at the end of my rope! During this construction time I am sharing a bathroom with my son who has zero interest in sharing his bathroom! I swear the child will never get married…..and if he does…..God bless that poor woman! Dear future daughter in law,Apparently dryers are not to be left by the sink! There are also a limited amount of cosmetics etc that are acceptable! He will be getting up at whatever time he absolutely has to in order to get where he is going on time so if you need to shower too then you will be the one getting up earlier! The rest of this is not bathroom related but just so ya know…..there will be no sheet on the bed…for whatever reason it is not acceptable! There is absolutely no reason to make the bed! Total waste of time! You will be doing all the dishes unless you keep the dishes separate in which case he will wash only his own dishes because other people’s dishes are disgusting! Tooth brush must be protected at all times! (Guess that one was bathroom related) There should be a stock pile of new toothbrushes just in case the present toothbrush should become contaminated! Also, tacos will be consumed entirely too often! I know there is more but I figure this is enough to take in at one time. Good luck,Your future mother in law

I have been told repeated that I should blog. I don’t even fully understand the purpose of blogging….I guess I’ll just be posting about my life here instead of Facebook from now on. 🤷‍♀️ It’s lookin like this first one might be a little boring but give me a little bit of a break here…I’m trying!!

You know Newtkn’s Law “Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong”? I think I accidentally made that my life motto. I didn’t choose it….it chose me! OK let’s catch up a little here. Usually I am posting to people who know me personally. Since that isn’t the case here I should probably introduce myself first. These details may or may not prove significant in future blogs. (This is gonna get long…work with me here.)

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. I wasn’t actually around for all that but sometimes it feels like I was! I was born in a small town in SC in 1979. (Yeah we’re takin it way back!) My mother was originally from Philadelphia, PA and my father was originally from small town SC. Well it took about 3 years for that to go to pot! (Remember Newton’s Law) It didn’t take too long for my mom to realize that there was a lot of sunshine and bugs in the south and just maybe she wouldn’t get along so great with her prim and proper, Southern Bell mother-in-law. So she packed me up and headed north to her family with plans of my dad following but that did not sit well with my grandparents! You don’t just up and leave with their grandchild! Since my mom obviously wasn’t gonna live in the south and my grandparents/dad obviously weren’t gonna live in the north….looks like the only thing left to do was to fight over where I would be living! Well the south may not have won the Civil War but they won this one easily! I got packed up and shipped back south.

Let me tell you about some of the fun you get to have when your mom lives in PA and your dad lives in SC. I flew, by myself, back and forth between PA and SC…..3 times a year from the age of 4 (they lied about my age cause you’re supposed to be 5 to fly alone…at least back then.) until I was out of high school. This is all well and good until the teen years! Teenagers don’t take well to being removed from all of their friends during EVERY school break! Ugh! Don’t do that to your kids people! Just a little public service announcement there…

Alright so we got through the traumatic childhood years and I’m almost 18 and have someone willing to send me to college and foot the whole bill!! No Problemo! Everyone’s dream come true and the opportunity of a lifetime!!! Right?? Only problem was….I was in love! That stuff will mess you up people!! Seriously think twice before allowing that to happen. So I did go off to college and I tried to love it but it just meant less and less time with the guy I was so in love with and I couldn’t stand it anymore. After about 3 months I left college late one night to come home and inform my step mother and my father that I was dropping out and before that I spoke to Mr Wondeful and his family to be sure I had somewhere to go because I had no doubt that my family would disown me! I got my living arrangements worked out and moved into a horrific house! Y’all….floors were missing, cats were dying in walls, expired raw chicken was left outside for days to feed the cats. There were so many cats all over that at one point I was leaving the yard and accidentally killed 3!! At one time!! There was one under 3 of the 4 tires!! 😲 There was a driveway lined with metal scraps and left over building materials. You would get a flat tire almost weekly. Y’all get the picture? It was a little rough but I was more than happy to be there cause I was in love! 🙄 (It literally pains me to type this!)

OK so…:First comes love then comes….Oops I forgot that part….then comes Michelle with the baby carriage! Luckily we had moved up in the world before the baby came. We had a luxury (please note sarcasm) one room (do not mistake for one bedroom..:literally one room) apartment. And at the ripe old age of 19 I was living in the lap of luxury with Mr Wonderful and my awesome baby boy! Now eventually babies start moving and one room is kinda pushing it for two mobile humans….ya throw in a third one and things get kinda tight! So we set out to find a bigger place which we definitely could not afford. We found a place (not the greatest) but it would put us even farther from my grandparents (these are the ones who fought for me and now I have a little one so…history kinda repeats). My grandparents offer to build us a house across the street from them so that they can have the baby closer and we’ll be better off and won’t have to move farther away etc etc etc. That’s a little hard to turn down in any financial situation…:let alone the one we were in at the time! So yes please and thank you….let’s build a house. I…..like me, myself, and I…..decided it would be a good time to get married! I’m fairly certain Mr Wonderful just went along with this cause….I don’t know why because…maybe because he was stuck, maybe because there was a house in it for him…maybe he was in love but I’m not so sure on that one. I think I left out a few important details about Mr Wonderful…..he was a lying, manipulative, alcoholic, drug addict, gambling, cheating, verbally abusive dude! This is literally the words I said to a friend when I was explaining why we were getting married….”Well I just figure he’s already done everything he could do to me and I haven’t left him yet so we may as well get married….the baby and I will have the same last name.” Another public service announcement…..MAYBE…just MAYBE you shouldn’t get married because ya don’t think your significant other could treat you any worse! First of all you’re wrong and second of all….it builds up!! Trust me!!

Alrighty, now we’re about 2 and a half years in to this wonderful marriage and living in our new built home with our beautiful baby. I can’t pretend to tell you how many times we’ve split up…seriously…I don’t know! This most recent split up I think is for good but we end up back together and pretty soon into that reunion I realized this was over….BUT I was an only child and I DO NOT want my son to be an only child!! I also didn’t want to spend my life telling stories about how this baby daddy lives here and that baby daddy lives there and sign papers with all different last names etc!! So I may have decided to have another child knowing that the relationship likely wouldn’t last….just probably.

The second bouncing baby boy arrives….upside down and sideways and with a lot of pain but he was cute so I forgave him! Let’s fast forward a year….I’m still with Mr Wonderful….I’ve hung on a good while. There was a party at my step brother’s house and I went with the boys. (Mr Wonderful rarely attended anything with me.) The party was a pool party and here I am alone in the pool with a 4 year old and a 1 year old! That ain’t easy! My brother’s friend came over and started helping with the kids! 😲 No questions asked just helped with whatever I needed…..figured it was too much for me to handle on my own so he helped. THAT my friends, was the beginning of the end!!

It NEVER occurred to me that there were men out there willing to take care of their own kids….let alone help with someone else’s kids! I was genuinely in shock! That day played over and over in my mind for a year! I made jokes here and there to friends and family….”If I ever get rid of Mr Wonderful, I’m going after that guy!” I never really thought I would get rid of Mr Wonderful but one day…..I snapped! (Nobody is dead don’t worry!) I was out cutting grass and my mind just kept going and I FINALLLY decided that if I was gonna raise these kids alone then I would rather raise these kids alone! Short version…..I told him I was done and to get out and it was finally the final time!

Meanwhile, back at the ranch….:that guy that helped with the kids over a year ago….well I just happened to hear through the grapevine that he was still single! I put on my STALKING cap and got to work! 😂 We’ve been married for almost 11 years now! ❤️

There is a whole lot of tragedy and drama that I left out of there. Maybe we’ll save that for another day because, believe it or not, I intend for this to be a fun blog! I just thought we should have a little history laid out first. Very short version of the other drama (just cause it may come up in future posts) is that I am the only child and only grandchild on both sides of my family!! Now that is awesome when you’re a kid at Christmas or birthday time…..but when you’re an adult with aging relatives it’s a little tricky! At this time the only older relatives that I have left are my grandmother (prim and proper southern bell) and my Aunt. I had to care for almost everyone else who has passed away at some point in my life! Thank God that all came AFTER I found a real man! I don’t know that I would have survived it without him!

I feel compelled for some reason to share this…..I am often told that I am funny. My oldest son is constantly told the same thing. I have always appreciated comedians and funny shows, movies, etc. When Robin Williams committed suicide, it had a huge effect on me! I obviously never knew him personally and didn’t even see all of his movies or stand up routines, but he was an obviously gifted comedian! Very talented! To me, his suicide made it impossible to ignore that most comedy comes from pain! It’s a coping mechanism. I’m sure there are comedians who have no trauma at all but I think if you pay attention you’ll notice that either their jokes are derived from their painful experiences or just that they want to make people laugh because they know how miserable it is to be sad. I hope that everyone will pay attention and yes, enjoy your funny, talented friends but be mindful of how they may actually be feeling and give them a soft place to land. That’s the end of my crazy rant.

Now that y’all know me a little…..hopefully we can have some blogs that are a little more fun! I think I’ll try to sum up my week tomorrow. It’s been a  doozy!!!

Thanks for joining me!

Good company in a journey makes the way seem shorter. — Izaak Walton