Massachusetts is for lovers

It felt good to sleep in my bed last night. It's been a funny few days. Thursday 5/5 - I spent the morning working from my parents' home. My mom and I shared a salad at our favorite cafe and, after we parted ways, I stopped by the dispensary and continued to work from an outdoor bench. The last time I was home my mom casually announced one afternoon, "Oh by the way, I invited Joseph over for dinner tonight." My mom had been talking my ear off about Joseph ever since he babysat my five nephews last Summer. Joseph grew up in Ecuador, went to Israel for university, speaks fluent Hebrew, and is now getting his PhD at Northeastern in transit engineering -- my mom's dream boy other than the fact that he isn't Jewish. He by chance texted me while I was on the train to Boston and we made plans to go out with two of his friends, Melissa and Kevin. We met at a hilariously tacky tiki bar that plays exclusively Reggaeton and the waiters gave us two free rounds of shots in honor of Cinco de Mayo. We migrated over to another bar in hopes of dancing. "I don't know many white girls who like to dance," said Kevin. I'm curious what kinds of white people he hangs out with. The dance floor was teeming with nineteen year olds and the shitty cover band was playing hits such as Vanessa Carlton's A Thousand Miles and that song from Shrek. We were disappointed but quickly reinvigorated when we discovered the basement level of the venue, a genuinely fun dance floor. I wasn't attracted to Joseph before but he was very sexy to dance with, which is an immediate turn on for me. He spun me around and guided my hips and kissed my cheek when we said goodbye. The night was magical. Friday 5/6 - I went to see John, my psychiatrist, in person for the first time in over a year. It felt so good to feel so good somewhere I had previously felt so bad. John was eager to share that he will be able to prescribe me MDMA beginning in January. After work, I went to Boston University finance department's end of year celebration. After 43 years and 1 semester, my dad finally retired from teaching. The event was one of those situations where you realize your parents have a whole life without you. All these strangers shared funny anecdotes about my dad and it was heartwarming. Later, I felt like I had to hang out with my friend Netanya because I'm going to be a bridesmaid at her wedding next May and I didn't come to Boston for her "Bridesmaid Dinner." When she told my parents that her wedding is taking place at the Science Museum I gasped in awe. This was very awkward because she said that I definitely should have known that already. Oops! It was also uncomfortable when she asked me how Dan is doing and I had to answer in front of my parents, who had an intense fight with him three weeks ago and haven't spoken to him since. This is how they learned that Dan is coming to the US next week. After Netanya left I went to Joseph's apartment to hang out with him, Kevin, and Melissa again but things took a turn for the worse after Melissa's friends came over. Kevin was wearing Joseph's yamaka and announced to the group, "Oh, I'm not Jewish, I'm just wearing this for fun." The friends uncomfortably introduced themselves and Kevin said that he definitely wasn't going to remember any of their names. "Especially yours," he pointed at Kanaijah. My anxiety turned up one notch with each of his microaggressions throughout the night. Furthermore, during our ten person game of Uno, Kevin kept saying things like "Are you high as fuck or what!!!" and Joseph laughingly asked me "Is there too much THC in there for you?" There's nothing worse than people who don't smoke weed yet narrate the whole experience. I sat in my paranoia for a bit before hastily leaving without really saying goodbye. I felt guilty later because Joseph has a crush on me and I didn't say bye to Melissa, who I genuinely like. I made the last T home and later learned that Joseph tried to catch up with me only to see the train disappear into the horizon. Saturday 5/7 - My mom's mom left behind some jewelry after she passed away. I spent the morning perusing through the collection with my mom and choosing a couple pieces for me to take. We sorted through the pile of rings, bracelets, broaches, charms, watches, necklaces, and earrings (including the clip-on variety), first separating them by type then style. It's been over five years since Savta Ida died but it's easy for me to remember what she looked like in most of her clothes. Because I wasn't going to be home on actual Mother's Day, mom, dad, and I went to brunch at this restaurant that their dead but very glamorous friend frequented. I requested hot sauce with my eggs. "Which do you want, Frank's or Tabasco?" the older waitress asked me. "Tabasco," I told her. "That's hot," she said. I boarded the Amtrak to Springfield where Micah, my pal from high school, picked me up. We rode to his home in Northampton, got high with his partner Becca, and aimlessly walked around the fancy cheese and wine store. We roasted a whole fucking chicken and had a conversation about weed where Becca told Micah that they feel uncomfortable about how large of a role weed plays in their relationship. "Thanks for telling me that, babe." We all cuddled on their tiny couch and watched their pet snails slither around the terrarium. Becca and Micah wanted me to cuddle with them and the threesome vibes were very strong. I thought Micah was hot shit in high school but the thought of kissing him now makes me queasy. On the other hand, Becca is hot and I would have certainly made out with them if Micah had not been around. It was a funny, awkward moment when we made our ways to our separate bedrooms. Sunday 5/8 - I misgendered Becca over breakfast. The youth group that Micah works at was throwing their annual performance and fundraiser event so Becca and I gave him some space in the morning. We sat at a cafe outdoors where someone asked us, "Are you Smith students?" This seemed odd to me but Becca admitted that the odds of two young lady-looking people in Northampton being Smith students is quite high. When helping Micah set up for the event, someone introduced themselves to me as Jordan. "I'm a mindfulness director," he announced. After much probing I learned this means he teaches yoga and meditation to high school students. I asked him how he manages interacting with people all day and, in response, he pulled out a crystal necklace from inside his T-shirt. To him, this was an adequate explanation. Throughout the weekend Micah called me Thirty, Flirty, and Thriving. He said that in high school I reminded him of the mom from Mean Girls when I so nonchalantly let forty high schoolers go wild at my parents' house while they were out of town. The evening sexytime vibes returned when Becca and Micah questioned me at length about my sexuality. I think that deserves a blog post of its own. Micah began to talk about how the two of them upgraded to a fancier strapon but Becca quickly shut down that conversation. I misgendered Becca again and apologized. "I just want you to feel affirmed," I said. "I feel affirmed by you," they responded. I felt even more attracted to Becca that night and the three of us were even more physical than the night before. The goodbye was similarly awkward when I retreated to the guest room to sleep. Monday 5/9 - Becca and I worked from home and wandered into town to get BLTs for lunch. I was stuck in a one hour meeting but my team members and I texted in our Whatsapp group making fun of how hilariously bored we were. When Micah got back, the three of us made a big bowl of pasta and passed around a joint. Goodbyes are hard. Micah drove me to the Amtrak station where I ate Now and Laters and waited for my delayed train. Twenty minutes into the ride the train paused in the middle of the tracks due to "police activity in Berlin." Berlin is a city in Connecticut. I connected to the next train in New Haven and spent the whole ride trying to figure out if the woman seated across from me was indeed my coworker. I spotted the company logo on her backpack when we arrived at Penn Station. I made it home around midnight.