To the ZOO I say!

Last week with the time change and all I was feeling pretty miserable. By Wednesday, I just couldn't stand the thought of another day at work... minutes felt like hours. I decided that I needed a mental health day. Joe had gotten back from Vegas that day and wasn't going back to VA until Sunday. So, we decided that on Friday we would blow off work *since it was also supposed to be 75 and sunny*, and do something fun together.

At first, we through around the idea of going to the shore, but decided that it would probably be colder there then it was in Philadelphia... so we decided on something a little more close to home. The Philadelphia Zoo. We had been talking about going to the zoo since the day we met- for two reasons, it being the oldest zoo in the country and it being like a stones throw from my house. Joe slept over Thursday night, and Friday morning we woke up, had a nice lunch at a sidewalk cafe on Main St, and headed to the zoo. We had a great day walking around together! The weather was perfect. It was beautiful and sunny, a pleasant break from all the snow! We spent a few hours, the highlights probably were the cheetahs, giraffe, monkeys, Joe liked the snakes (must be a boy thing) and both our personal favorite.. the rhino.

Here is a picture of me and my new boyfriend.

Man was it nice to just blow off a day of work and do something fun. We don't get to spend a lot of that kind of time together lately, so I was happy we could do it. Not only did it help my mental sanity, but I think it helped our relationship. Sometimes its nice to just go out and enjoy something simple and return to child hood days. As we walked through the zoo hand in hand quietly enjoying the animals I couldn't help but notice something else.. the chaos of little kids and their parents who were enjoying the zoo.. but definitely not in the same quiet reserved manner that we were. I didn't say this to Joe, because I'm sure it would scare him shitless but I found myself wondering what kind of father he would be some day? Would he take the time out his busy life to take his kids to the zoo? I was lucky enough to have parents who always took me to these types of things as a child, some of my best memories are the places I've went when I was a little kid. My hope is that some day, I can do the same for my kids...not to mention I get to do all these great things again myself! Because lets face it, no matter how old you get, there is still something so fascinating about the zoo. We definitely should take time out of our busy schedules and do things like this more often. Life is too short to be cooped up in an office.

Breakfast at Tiffanys.... or maybe just a snack?

Joe left for Vegas last Wednesday with his friends, Ev and Ry. You know.. the boys trip.... complete with Limo from the airport to the hotel.. anyways.. his request was simple: Please don't call me a million times, I don't want to talk to you or anyone, I just want to enjoy my vacation and be in the moment with my friends. As we talked, he kept saying he didn't think I could go a week without calling him because, when he is in VA we talk, like every day, most days more then once. This bet intrigued me.. did he really think I was that dependent on him that I wouldn't be able to last? And for that matter - why would I want to talk to someone who specifically just stated they did not want to hear from me? OK BET ON BUDDY.. YOU DON'T THINK I CAN DO IT.. WATCH THIS. I promptly asked him, what would be in it for me if I could complete the bet-- he said, a gift of my choice. OH DANGER.. OK.. let the hunt begin. I promptly type in www.tiffanys.com to my web browser. I have been wanting one of the new line of Tiffany's keys for awhile, but didn't want to buy myself such an expensive present. This is what I want, on a long chain to wear with like a tunic and leggings or a tank top in the summer. I think its really cute! I sent that off to Joe's GMail to complete the terms of the bet.. no calls, I want this. He promptly wrote back that the price was ridiculous, how could a silver key cost $185? Well, boy I said - its 50% markup for the nice turquoise green box accompanied with a white bow .. which makes it TIFFANY'S. He said that was ridiculous.. so I wanted to give him another option. I sent him this - a $38,000, 1.5 carrot engagement ring thus making my original choice look cheap. His response to this email. YOU WISH. (So I guess I'll be getting my original choice).

So Wednesday rolls around and off he goes to Vegas. When he landed in Vegas, he sent me this text:

Joe: Landed. Vegas!

I did not respond. Day 1 completed :)

Wednesday night I left for Atlanta for work, and was there from Wednesday night to Friday afternoon. During that time, we had no communications. This was probably the hardest part of the bet for me to keep because, I hate flying, and we were flying through all sorts of thunderstorms. This was probably the time I would have called him for some moral support - but stayed strong in the name of TIFFANY'S.

Friday afternoon, just as I landed at the Philadelphia airport, I received another text. This time a picture of a lion, from some show they were seeing. My response: :) - just a smiley face, no words, and still no call. Friday night when I got home, I was sitting on the couch and he wouldn't give up, another text:

Joe: Tiffany's is looking really nice, especially the engagement rings.

Ok, bust out the engagement ring word? That's low. Of course that will solicit my interest, but definitely still no call.

My text response: Bets still on :) Take a good look at those rings.

Now mind you, to date during his trip, none of this communication was even initiated by me. It seems as though, the more I did nothing.. the more he stepped up to the plate and tried to get in touch with me. I began to wonder, is this true in real life, and not just in bets? Is it true that the more that you chase someone- the more they run.. and the more you just do nothing, the more you force them to make the effort and come to you. I always thought that showing I was a good girlfriend meant putting in the effort, calling, keeping in touch, being there fore him. It seems though that the more I try and do those things, the more I don't give him a chance to show me he can make the effort to. So the question is-- where is the happy medium where both people know when to go the extra mile for the other? I don't know the answer.

Saturday morning. 9 am.

Text from Joe: Got some compliments on the Ben Sherman blazer you picked out for me. Great pick! Maybe one day me and you can come to Vegas just the two of us. I am playing black jack now, maybe we can catch up tomorrow (and by tomorrow he meant Saturday- since he was still awake from Friday night)

Nicole's response: Nothing.

5 minutes later - the unthinkable. Phone rings - its Joe. I let it ring a few times so as not to seem eager and pick it up. I specifically state - terms of bet did not include you calling me.

His response: I caved.

We talked for about 10 minutes, before he went back to playing black jack. He told me about his trip and the fun they had been having. But he told me one thing that validated the reason I had made this bet in the first place. I felt like Joe thought I was needy.. that I couldn't live my life without him. I told him before he left that he had know idea how great of a girl I was and how he did not appreciate me for all the things I do, and all the freedom I give him compared to most girlfriends. When he left, he couldn't see what I meant. But what he told me on the phone made me know that he gets it now. He said that the other girls were calling/texting continuously annoying their boyfriends who just wanted to get away together for a five day vacation. He said they would text at least 3-4 times an hour- and the boys were getting so frustrated.. they inquired as to why he hadn't heard from me.

His response to them: Shes smart - she said she wouldn't call if I buy her Tiffany's.

Their reply: Dude, you have the best girlfriend ever.

MY PLAN WORKED:

Their validating our relationship to him, and telling him I am a keeper, will only help me in the future. I want him to see that he does have a good girl, and he should nurture that more instead of take it for granted. Its Sunday morning, I still haven't called, and the hardest part is over. He will be back Tuesday night - hopefully with my gift. I cant say the bet was all for him, because it definitely proved to me that I don't NEED to talk to him as much as I think I do... and I am stronger then I give myself credit for. I'll let you know if I end up with the engagement ring (breakfast) or just a snack(the necklace I originally wanted) Either way, I'm the winner all around.

Down by the Bay...

This weekend was by far one of the nicest weather wise we've had in awhile. It was Joe's friends birthday so we decided to go down to his shore house on Friday night and do a little gambling and clubbing in AC for his friends birthday. Just to give you some background, I didn't have a car because I had dropped it off at the Hyundai dealer for a grease and oil change, so Joe had to pick me up in Philly and then head down to the shore. I promised him that if he did that, I would have a pan of lasagna waiting, that way we could eat a good meal and not have to stop on the way. So, I went to the grocery Thursday night, got all the ingredients for meat lasagna, and attempted to prepare. I read the instructions carefully, but man is it hard apportioning all the ingredients evenly so as not to short change one of your lasagna layers! Yeah, not as easy as it looked. Friday, I arrived home from work and popped my lasagna concoction into the oven, while I got ready for the shore. I guess people were dying to get out last weekend because it took Joe 2.5 hours to get to my house from his house in NJ. Yeah..so by the time he arrived, stress was at a maximum height since we still had to get back in the car and go to the shore. We wolfed down the lasagna, which came out great despite my inability to make even layers, and we headed off.

We arrived in Longport, NJ, where Joe's shore house is to meet up with his friends. To say that I love this house would be an understatement. His dad, being a contractor thought of everything... brick pizza ovens, fireplaces in the bedrooms, 8 bedrooms, game room, outdoor shower house, two roof decks.. the place is amazing. Upon arrival we quickly changed, pregamed a little and headed off to AC since, with the traffic debacle it was getting late. When we got to AC, we went to the Tropicana. We decided that we were going to gamble a little then go into Providence, one of my favorite clubs in AC. We sat down at Black Jack, and I put $100 down on the table and received $100 in chips. I couldn't lose, I had the best night gambling I think I have ever had. We played about an hour, and I walked away up $300 from my original investment. YAY.

So, off to Providence we went. Once we were inside, surrounded by the cast of the Jersey Shore (not really, just a lot of N. Jersey Guido's) it was pretty much a standard AC night, lots of shots and drinks... with one exception. Holly Montague from the Hills was there... here is a picture. It was pretty weird seeing her in person.

Below is a pretty drunk pic of Joe and I but, we had a nice time. After leaving the club, we went back out the casino because Joe wanted to gamble more. At first, I just watched for fear that I may lose my winnings. Everyone who knows me knows I love gambling too much to just watch so finally I caved and threw in another $100. God must have been looking down on me because I won another $200 bucks, bringing my grand total to almost $600. WINNER. I walked away pretty happy.

The next day, the sun was shining and it was a pretty warm day so Joe took me around Longport to look at

that he thought I would find more amazing then his. OH MAN WAS HE RIGHT. I HAVE FOUND MY DREAM HOUSE ON THE OCEAN. Lets take a guess how many bedrooms this place has?!

Needless to say, I had a great weekend in Longport, and man was it nice to see my boyfriend finally!