Being Too Close To Nature, Plasma Facilities, and Hungry People

WARNING: This post might be a bit lengthy. I probably deserve every tl;dr that I might get. Read on, if you dare.

Well, hello again. Since my last update I've been pretty busy with various things. They range from the mundane (eating, toileting, sleeping, marathoning Dragonball and Dragonball Z, etc.) to I-can't-believe-this-is-happening (read on for that stuff).

Firstly, last weekend was spent "donating" plasma and then drifting in and out of consciousness, feeling like death. Was it worth the $85 (Zach made $50; I made $35)? Damn straight. The more excruciating part was the many hours in the waiting room and various testing rooms, where they made us repeat our names, addresses, and social security numbers as if we were some kind of amnesiacs. Then we had to prove we were literate a couple times, followed by a bunch of health questions and physical examinations. The bright side? After some typical Hugh Grant movie finally decided to get off the screen, they showed MRS. DOUBTFIRE!!! One of my favorite movies of all time. Too bad I missed most of it because of the various exams and interrogations. :(

While we were in the donating stage, Major Payne came on, which royally pissed me off. The movie, in case you aren't familiar with it, begins with George Thorogoods' "Bad to the Bone." There is a certain other fabulous piece of cinematic genius that also begins with that song. It's about this adopted redheaded boy who gets in a lot of trouble and causes all kinds of problems for the kind, loving, and handsome man who just wanted to be a great dad, but gets shit on by everyone he knows, because apparently that town is full of asshats. Problem Child. I was really, really hoping that I was about to have the presence of John Ritter soothing me in a time of extreme anxiety. But noooooo. Damon Wayans had to ruin everything. If they had to show a movie starring him, why wasn't it Earth Girls Are Easy? Then I could have been comforted by Jeff Goldblum's presence, at least. Bah.

I decided on listening to Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds instead, which helped for awhile...until the numbness spread throughout my body. I begun to panic, nearing hyperventilation. My brain stopped functioning temporarily; I still don't recall turning off my iPod. By the time the phlebotomist came to help me, I had lost my hearing. Apparently we had not eaten enough beforehand, which can cause some nasty side effects such as this. I thought I was okay after a few minutes of rest. But then I collapsed outside the clinic, alone and starring in a one-man slapstick show. We haven't gone back since then, but hopefully it will be better next time.

Thursday held a trip to downtown for Pig Out in the Park. I love food, and I love downtown. Unfortunately...waaaaaay too crowded for my liking. I expected it, but I deal with it much better when I'm not actually experiencing it. Crowds make me claustrophobic.

Zach & I had some yummy Chinese food. My one complaint is that their egg rolls were called "The best egg rolls ever." Now, when somebody makes a claim like that, it had better be true. They were quite good, but I've had better. The ones my mom & I used to make were honestly the best ones I've had so far (and I've consumed soooo many egg rolls in my lifetime). That's not being conceited or anything. Just my opinion.

Also, we've decided that once we can afford an apartment, we're going to try to move downtown. It's surprisingly cheaper than I thought.

So then we decided to go camping for the weekend with Zach's parents, his sister, and her boyfriend. I've realized that I'm more of a nature lover in theory than in practice, for one reason. Just one. INSECTS. They were horrible.

There were some good times: S'mores, taking photographs, seeing all the cute squirrels run around, getting drunk and playing a rousing game of Balderdash...

And then there were bad times.

Bees. Mosquitoes. Flying ants. EVERYWHERE. All over me, all over the food, all over everyone else...if there is one thing I cannot stand, it is insects on food. If I've seen something land on it, I will not eat it. It's just gross. Not to mention my severe phobia of bees/wasps/hornets/bumblebees/yellow jackets/etc. If they are near me long enough, I have panic attacks.

By the time we got home, I felt dirty and like I'd never be the same again. One shower later and I still feel them crawling on me. Maybe I need therapy...again.