This weekend has been interesting. I don’t know if there’s really a word that most accurately can describe it. Friday was uneventful, but Saturday was the weird one. I’m so drained right now I feel like I’m barely functioning.
In the early afternoon on Saturday was my great-uncle’s memorial service. I spent the morning getting ready, and driving out to Horseshoe Bay to pick my parents up. I almost got run over by some idiot driver right near the ferry terminal, so my nerves were completely shot. Thankfully my dad was willing to drive for the rest of the day. We stopped to pick up a few things, and have a little bite to eat. I wasn’t hungry, but I hadn’t had anything to eat that day, so I figured I should at least have something. I had a few bites of my burrito, and I was done.
The memorial service was really good. My aunt spoke for a while, and I loved what she said. It was just perfect. I had seen my grandpa and his wife come in at the beginning of the service, but we never got a chance to talk with him. After the service was over, we made our way over to my Dad’s cousin’s house for a few hours. It was nice to see the family, but I felt like I was having the same conversation over and over again. I mostly hung back, and stood with my parents. When we were done there, we left to drive back to Horseshoe Bay.
The boat ride back to Keats was uneventful, and then it was on to my 10 year high school reunion. I was very apprehensive about the whole situation, but my dad was willing to come pick me up whenever I was done, which was a good feeling. I had no idea how long I’d last in there. Our group was in a side room, and as I walked in there, I immediately felt like I was back in high school again. Everyone was very cliquey, and I didn’t feel like I could join any of the groups. I felt so tiny and awkward, so I immediately started drinking. Not the best decision, but I didn’t know what else to do. I sat down at an empty table, because all the other tables were filled. I had a small appetizer, because I knew I needed to eat a little more, but I had no appetite.
Finally a few people wandered in who I had been friends with back then, so that made me feel a little more comfortable. As I had a few more drinks, I got more courage, so I was able to talk with a bunch of people. Like it was at the memorial service, I had the same conversation about 20 times. So, what are you doing, where are you living, yadda yadda. Two of the friends that I had really been looking forward to seeing came in, but I didn’t run into them again over the evening, which was too bad. I ended up staying for a few hours, but it got to the point where I was all talked out - there’s only so much you can say to people who you weren’t ever very good friends with anyway, and people were getting louder and louder. I could barely hear anything, and I knew if I stayed much longer, I’d keep drinking, and I didn’t want to get too drunk. My parents were picking me up, after all! 
Thankfully when I called my parents, they were nearby, and were able to pick me up. I think I said goodbye to one or two people, but at that point I didn’t care - I just wanted to leave. I was so exhausted from the day.
Sunday was a nice, leisurely day. We had planned to go to the church service at Keats Camp, but found out through a friend of my parents that some of the campers had Norwalk Virus, so they’d canceled church, and were shutting the camp off to visitors. Yikes. I hope it doesn’t spread to anybody else on the island!
Since it was Sea Cavalcade weekend (an annual festival in Gibsons), we watched the swimmers swim from the island to Gibsons, which was interesting. I’d done that last summer, but it just wasn’t feasible for me to do it this year. There was also an air show, which was pretty cool. I was surprised at how long it went on, and how impressive the pilots were. My aunt and cousin came over for a while, and we had an interesting discussion about our family, and all the issues we’re dealing with in our relationships. We don’t talk about it very often, so it was very enlightening, if also very exhausting emotionally.
I caught a ferry back home in the afternoon, and I ran into one of my classmates. Apparently she had stayed at the pub until it closed down, and those who were still there kept the party going at one of the beaches until the morning. I can’t believe they partied that long. I know I’m not that old, but I’m definitely way too old to stay out that late. I’m normally falling asleep by 10pm these days. I used to be able to be out all night and party like that, but once I hit like 23, I couldn’t do that any more. LOL. Plus, I’m just not interested in doing that anymore.
So, it’s been an interesting weekend. I’m exhausted beyond belief. This coming up weekend I should have more opportunity to sleep, so I’m really looking forward to that.
