Missing K and Norman

The game Saturday was awesome. I woke up to "Boomer Sooner" and was raring to go. I drove to ER's, and her parents showed up a little before 8 a.m., and off we went! Our first stop was Wal-Mart for paunchos, since it was raining a little bit. It was good to be back in the land of the Sooners and see crimson and OU stuff everywhere. I always feel like I'm home when I'm in Norman.

ER's parents are absolutely awesome. As soon as we parked the car, her dad went to the back and pulled out beer. It was 11:30. A.M.!! I have never had any alcoholic beverage at 11:30 a.m.! But it was game day, and the first one of the season at that, so we had beer. We walked around campus corner and had really yummy pizza at Hideaway Pizza.


















We went and watched the band warm up and to see the preconcert and parade. I saw a ton of people I hadn't seen in forever and several I didn't expect to see. It was nice. It's one of the things I miss about Norman.

The game was good, but it was a bit closer than what I expected and what I would have liked. I'm hoping, though, that maybe we just had the season-opener jitters. Hopefully we'll play better next week when we play Washington, and hopefully we'll be even better than that the following week when we play Oregon.



(I started this video after this had been going on a while, so it's not as loud as when it just starts.)

I was sad when it was time to leave. I miss Norman so much, but at the same time, I think I left at the right time. This way, I will always love Norman. All my memories of Norman will involve the band and some of the best friends of my life living there with me. My memories will be college and working on campus and interning and journalism and football and our Saturday night girls' night. If I stayed, some of my friends I started college with would have graduated, and I would have felt left behind. Whenever I go back, it feels like home, and I'm always excited. That's how I want it to stay.

We drove home that night. My car was at ER's, so we got there at 2:30, and I was home and getting in bed at about 3. I was exhausted. I slept in on Sunday, and then we headed out to Addison. We got a group together because every Fourth of July Addison does this big fireworks show called Kaboomtown, and it got ruined by a little rain. They scheduled the make-up for Sunday night. All these restaurants in Addison have watch parties, so we went to Champps, which is a sports bar (I love sports bars!). I guess there was an air show, too, because all these old planes kept flying over. They weren't doing stunts or anything, but it was neat to see them. The fireworks show was really good. It was the awesome finale that made the show.

There was a live band at Champps, and one of the guitar players had his two kids go up. His 12-year-old daughter sang, and his son, who was 2, had a little mini-electric guitar. He was so cute (I'll post a picture here later -- I haven't uploaded it yet.).

After the fireworks were over, we headed across the street to Pete's Dueling Piano Bar. I'd never been before, and I'd always wanted to go. As we were crossing the street, the live band at Champps started playing "Jesse's Girl," which is one of K's and my songs. (The groomsman I walked down the aisle with at the wedding we met at was named Jesse. AND the groom sang "Jesse's Girl" at the karaoke bar the first night K and I actually met.)

We got into Pete's, and the first song they played when we were there was "Sweet Home Alabama," which is K's and my actual song. (K, the groom and his brother sang it at the karaoke bar the night we met because the DJ was terrible and I requested it. The DJ was so bad that he didn't even have "Sweet Home Alabama," but he said he did have it on karaoke, so maybe the three guys at our table should sing it.) And of course, they played "Jesse's Girl." At that point, I was getting a little teary-eyed because I miss him. It makes it harder knowing that it'll be a long time before I see him again, and I'm not even sure how long a "long time" is. Then, the pianists played Journey's "Don't Stop Believin'," which is another one of our semi-songs. And they played the song "I Don't Wanna Lose Your Love," which is another awesome song that always makes me think of K because on the line "You know I like my girls a little bit older," K always changes the words to say "a little bit younger" since he's 28 and I'm 23.

Then, one of the pianists called up all current and former military people in the crowd, and they played "God Bless the U.S.A." And I was crying again. I miss him like crazy! I would give absolutely anything to just be able to hug him right now.

I had gotten to talk to K very briefly earlier that day, but he'd said he would call me later that night my time. I took my phone out a little before 11 and put it on vibrate so I wouldn't miss it, and I held it in my hands and kept checking it because I'd also told him that if he missed me the first time, call right back so I'd catch it then. (The first time he called me, I was out wtih friends celebrating my birthday and Jeremy's birthday. I looked down at my phone right as he was hanging up. The words "Private call" changed to "1 missed call" as soon as I looked at it. I had just missed him. He called back like 30 minutes later, after I'd been watching my phone the whole time, decided he wasn't able to call back and walked away for 30 seconds.)

Well, we left the piano bar a little before midnight. I was glad I'd be home probably by the time K called, so I'd get to talk to him in peace and quiet and not have to worry about answering and weaving my way out of a bar to talk to him. I was standing outside my car outside my apartment talking to Jeremy and another friend who'd met us at my place since she wasn't familiar with the area. As we were talking, I was playing with my flip-phone and barely opening and closing it. It was still on vibrate.

When I walked away from my friends and up the stairs to my apartment, I saw that I'd missed his calls. Two of them, so I knew he wasn't calling back. I had just missed them. I was so upset because I was holding my phone when he called. I was missing him like crazy and really wanting to talk to him, and I missed his call. Naturally, I started bawling. I turned on my computer and sent him an e-mail. I told him about the bar and about how they kept playing our songs -- and we heard the Journey song again on the way home.

He called me this morning, though, and we were able to talk for just under 45 minutes. It's no hug, but it's always nice to just hear his voice. I miss him so much. And it's only been two weeks!! :(