So, on my way home now. i wrote up a journal four days ago in the Atlanta airport, but lost internet just as i was about to post it. i like having a lappy. :3

So, Momma Sam's gone and the funeral is over, but i had a much better time than i was expecting. Maybe it was because i got to meet tons of extended family and friends of the family, who are all much cooler than the drama queen aunts that i usually see. Maybe it's because i'm older, and not QUITE as self-centered and stupid as i was last time i visited.

Viewing was Sunday, funeral was Monday. The whole time, i shed one single tear, and it was for my grandpa, not my grandmother. They had him sit next to the casket, and he was sobbing by the time my parents and i got up to the front where he was. We sat in the pews quietly afterwards, and the whole time, all i could think was "Why did i pick NOW to start liking my family?"

Things picked up after all the friends started arriving, though. Everyone was chatting and introducing themselves and sharing stories about Momma Sam. From what i've heard, she was a very nice lady, and it was nearly impossible to not like her; she loved children, her favorite holiday was Thanksgiving, not Christmas, and she played bridge like a maniac. All i'd known about her before was that she could cook like no one else's business and she'd smoked like a chimney her whole life until she got cancer.

The service itself was very brief, no more than a half hour long. Then we all went back to Pop's house and kept visiting with everyone. Talking, laughing, sharing old photos and stories, and making fun of Aunt Pat behind her back. [if you knew her, you'd do it too; she's a bitter old witch. it wasn't until this trip that i realized i wasn't the only one who thought that :3]

Alabama is a welcome break from frigging Lancaster. There's PLANTS. And the people are halfway DECENT, instead of trying to ram you with their car or shove you out of their way or shoot you. There's lots of wide open space, whereas Lancaster is starting to feel rather claustrophobic as of late, and there are woods just about everywhere. i went wandering through the trees and underbrush behind my Uncle Don's house, and it felt fantastic.

i'm worried about my grandpa. He was married to Momma Sam for 60 years, and she did everything for him. Cooked every meal, cleaned every bit of the house, and was always at home waiting for him. Pop has a housekeeper coming in to make him food now, and tidy up, but she can't be there all the time like Momma Sam was. But she's a cool lady. She has a German accent. :3

All in all, everyone held up really well. Pop isn't as energetic as he used to be, but he's not unbearably sullen, and he's 81 for chrissake. Mum did fantastic the whole trip; she hasn't complained at all, and was bright and chipper the whole time. Dad was pretty positive, as well; i think he really really likes it when mum and i come with him to his hometown.

ima go talk to my mommy now. :3