dinner at the madhouse

when i was putting g's number in my cellphone, i said, what should i call you girls? and one of her roomates said, it's in mine as the madhouse. so that's what it is. after 2 phone calls and a text message after my return, g finally calls me on thursday and leaves a message that her friend britney is in town and is making a middle eastern feast and do i want to come over for dinner? so i saw her, for the first time since i've come back. it was crazy, 9 people running around, eating together. wierd interactions. brittney in the kitchen, cooking up a storm. cool hair. like my cousin sarah's, long in the front, spiky in the back. g and i end up hiding in her room where we exchange christmas gifts. very successful, she seemed greatful and adoring of my gifts, and i feel well known by hers- vanilla sugar for drink glasses, tiki stationary (like the tiki lounge! RIP) and tachentucher (pocket tissues) with a picture of a glamorous 50's woman with the words "she liked imaginary men best of all." everyone seemed busy, so i sat down at the dining room table with joe, who was just reading there. he was so unfriendly, seeming tired and bitter. there was an empty vodka bottle on the table, so i wondered if he'd been drinking, and wanted to make sure i never went out with him if this is how he gets. i don't know if that interaction scared me off, but i didn't get to know brittney, didn't get to hear about anyone's christmases, in general felt superfluous. joe was trying to rush people the whole meal and after, cause they were aparently all going out for hooka. i was already feeling so out of it i didn't even feel bad declining due to work the next day. he was totally annoying- all i could think of was how charming janik was, and how kind and accepting of the group, when he was trying to keep michi moving. it was not a good day for my new plan, that since i will never convince g of what a jerk he is, that since they're probably going to get married and move west momentarily, i need to figure out what she sees in him and learn to stand him. my mantra has mostly been, he's better than marty, but he wasn't really that night.