I should be doing laundry...

Actually, I should be, sleeping because it's midnight, but neither The Baby nor I have anything practical to wear tomorrow.  I really should have done laundry last night, but instead, I decided I would get up really early and put clothes in the wash and go back to bed.  Yes, I am not only lazy and an "excellent" (I put that in quotations to make sure you could hear the sarcasm in my words, mmm-kay?) procrastinator, I also have unfounded faith in my ability to function in the morning.

Care to guess what happened when my alarm went off this morning?

Yep.

I hit the snooze button.

Every 10 minutes.

For three hours.

I'm going to go start a load of laundry, now...

Oh, is it irony? or just weird coincidence?

Remember that story I wrote out a few months back?  The one about looking for a ring and finding the candy canes instead?  The candy canes that brought up memories of a Christmas 4 years in the past? 

Yeah? 

Well, I found the ring today.

In the very first drawer I looked in when I searched for it the first time.  This time, I had memories twice as old as the former come flooding back.  I don't remember much, good or bad.  My very first real relationship.  Somehow this ring has made it through 8 years and a move to a smaller house.  I would return it, but if he didn't want it back 8 years ago, I'm pretty sure he's not going to want it now.  What's he going to do with it?  Give it to the pregnant girlfriend he's trying to cheat on with me?  I doubt it.

It's strange the way we've changed.  We reconnected through an internet social site a few months ago (hence the searching for the ring just to see if I still had it).  I'm taller than he is, now.  He used to be all about skinheadedness and started growing his hair after we broke up.  He no longer speaks to the mutual friend I met him through.  He wears skinny jeans, works in a leather shop that specializes in S&M products, I believe, and is in school for fashion design.

He's still as persistent as ever.  Assumes that he can get his way if he keeps insisting and pushing me around.  I, however, don't take his crap this time around.  I make my own decisions.  I got no butterflies in my stomach that first time I saw his name after these 8 long years.

I went to see him once in the last few months.  He tried to act like we were 16 again and still together.  Tried to force a kiss before I left and I threatened to physically hurt him.  I think that shocked him into backing off.  I haven't talked to him since.

Now, are you ready for the irony, or weird coincidence, or whatever?

When I went looking in that drawer, I was aiming for the Christmas CD in the back!

Christmas seems to be a common denominator in dredging up memories, huh?  Wish it would remind me of happy times...

I think I am going to get rid of this ring. Then maybe I will stop thinking about the similarities in the relationships that worry me and start remembering the differences in the personalities that calm my fears.