So, I know that in my November re-cap I mentioned that I recently taken a relationship from being "Just Friends" to being "Friends with Benefits." It's still going on. We've know each other since we were, I don't know- 12 maybe. We went to school and in Jr. High and High School had friends in common. In fact, one of best friends at the time had a wicked, wicked crush on him even though she was dating (and eventually married) one of his best friends. Back then, I thought that he was funny and was a total man whore and that was it. Neither of us had any interest in the other, whatsoever. We graduated high school. I went to college. He went into the Army. He came back home, bought his great uncle's house, had a kid with a married woman, & got a decent job. I spent that time just trying to get my shit together. (Honestly, I'm still working on that!) In short, we went our separate ways but the funny thing was that whenever we ran into each other, which was rare, he would always hit on me. I never thought anything of it. As I said, he was a man whore. Flirting came as naturally to him as breathing and I was one of the few females that he hadn't slept with and he didn't know anyone that I had slept with. Then 2 New Year's Eves ago, I was out with my brother, sister-in-law, and best friend and I ran into him. We exchanged numbers but neither of us ever used them. They just kind of took up space in the memories of our phones. This past October, I wished him a Happy Birthday on his Facebook page, something that I usually do. No big deal, really, but after that, he started texting me, thanking me for the birthday wish and then we began flirting. The texts were getting lustier and lustier and finally, after 3 weeks or so, I just asked him if he wanted to make out. I went over to his house and the rest is kind of current history.

Originally, I thought that we had nothing in common but the fact that we went to high school together and as far as I was concerned, well, why not hook up. It was no big deal. It was super fun and the man's got some skills! Actually, as it turns out, we do have things in common and he makes me laugh. The more we get together, the more I want him. And things are getting, well, more tender. We do actually care about each other. This Friday, I got the distinct feeling that he actually wanted me to stay. I confess, I'm truly beginning to actually like him and I don't know what to do about it. He really is a very good man but he's perfectly content to be a single guy. I am not content to be a single woman. I'm tired of it. So I ask you, what's a girl to do?

Has it been, how shall I put this, an interesting year for any other e-stripper? It began with the little boy of an acquaintance of mine being electrocuted by a 220 line on New Year's Eve and passing away on the 10th of January. Then, on January 17th, my best friend's mother, our very own Dimartiste, her mother had a massive, extremely unexpected heart attack and passed away on the 20th of January. She's doing remarkably well, all things considered, but she and her mother were so very, very close. And she's been so busy helping to deal with everything and take care of her very ill father that she's barely had any time to deal with her own grief. In my own world, I got into another car accident in my beloved new car after going to the hospital to say goodbye to Dimartiste's mother. It sucked. I wound up in the ditch directly across the street from my driveway after 3 attempts to make it up the hill because it was snowing like a son of a bitch that night! Fortunately, the car was fixed and I was not injured but it still sucked.

Did I mention that in December I got a cat? He's lovely. He's four. A retired breeding male that I re-named Rhys. I got this cat because I've missed having a pet, particularly a cat. He's at the door when I come home from work and sleeps with me at night. I love feeling his little body against mine on the other side of the covers. A shadow has crept in on this happy little scene, however. 5 weeks ago, my mother and I rushed him to the emergency vet because he was having a hard time breathing. Turns out, he has asthma. And now, as I sit here writing this, I'm riding out the 3rd asthma attack in 24 hours! I'm waiting, praying for asthma meds to kick in so that I don't have to rush him back to the emergency vet. (I took him on Thursday morning at 6 a.m.) Frankly, I cannot afford another emergency visit. And so I wait and I pray, fervently hoping that as soon as this post is done, he'll be breathing easier and I won't have to borrow money from my parents to take him in for a breathing treatment and some oxygen. It's funny, one of the reasons that I got him was to help me cope with the stress from my very stressful job and yet he just adds to the worry and vexations. I love him. Lord knows I do. I'll keep you posted...

There is some interesting if not good news as well but I'll save that for later! :)