I am my own Destiny...

So Thursday was a great day all around. First and foremost...it was my day off, so I was able to sleep in, even if it was for only two more hours than usual. On top of that, I spent the day with mom. It was a lot of fun. We went over to Fredericksburg to the Dress Barn in Central Park, on a mission to find clothes for my brother Steve and Anna's wedding. We figured now would be the best time to shop, as it is just after the holidays so we had a better chance of finding sales, as well as the fact that the wedding may be in March, but it's in Pittsburgh! So, but looking now, we'd probably find warmer clothes! In the end, even though I found this really cute dress, I bought a nice pair of black slacks (as I desperately needed a pair and they fit me wonderfully!) and mom left with a nice flowered and beaded top. From there, we went back to Culpeper for some flea market shopping. I was hoping to find some chairs for our kitchen table, not caring if they matched too much. Of course, Mike wanted to know why we needed chairs for the table as we never eat at the table...well, yeah! Because we have no chairs!!!
The first place we went was more of a knick-knack shop, not a whole bunch of furniture. The next place, however, is the best place to find furniture. My brother Jimmy and his fiancee found a coffee table and two end tables there in very good shape for an equally good price. Over the last couple of years I, myself have found little things here and there that are now incorporated into our home.
From the moment we stepped through the door, mom and I were on a mission, though. To find two decent chairs that weren't too bad with the kitchen table. I would worry about trying to match the entire set at a later time. Peaking in here and there, we found some really great stuff, as usual. Then, as I looked into one little alcove, I noticed it was full of wooden chairs...perfect! Immediately my eyes were drawn to two stacked, armed chairs crafted out of a dark wood. They were a little dusty and worn, but they were exactly what I was looking for. Then mom, from behind me, said, "You could get all four and have the two armed chairs at each end of the table." All four? I looked beside my chairs and saw two more armless stacked chairs of what looked like the same make. Sweet! But then I thought of the price. Last time I found chairs I liked in this place, they were $40 apiece. I flipped over the price tags, and Eric's Anna, you're gonna love this...
The two chairs with arms were $6 apiece and the ones without were $5 apiece. With tax, four chairs in very good shape came to a whopping $23.10! And what's cool about it (besides the price) is that the chairs look almost identical to the chairs mom and dad used to have when they had the table! Funny how things work out.
So I went back to mom's to drop her off, then after a phone call, went off to have my hair cut. It was getting REALLY long and heavy. Normally I get it cut short once a year at the beginning of summer (yes, I said once a year) and let it grow out the rest of the year. Well, this year, I only had it trimmed because I wanted to be sure it would be long for the wedding. So, way over a year since I had it last cut, it was very long, very heavy, and very hot (even in winter)! Before it was cut, it nearly covered my breasts. Now that it's cut and layered, it reaches my collarbone...almost six inches off! It feels so much better!
Moving on from my haircut, I went home and unloaded my treasures. The chairs were perfect! Then, since Mike was off from work, we decided to have a movie night, which is a little tradition we're trying to do together on nights he has off...it's some time we have together since we don't usually get to see each other very much with me working during the day and him at night. The movie finished before 8:00pm, and we were wondering what to do next. Just then, I got a text from my brother Jimmy..."Coming to karaoke tonight?" Heck, yes, we are! So Mike and I got ready to head down to Baja Bean Company (Baja) for some karaoke.
Now, I'd never done karaoke before. My friend and I had wanted to in high school, but we were either too young for most of the places or couldn't work out a time to go. I was nervous about getting up in front of a lot of people. Thankfully, Jimmy suggested we do a duet to help ease me into it. So, "Whiskey Lullaby" by Brad Paisley and Alison Kraus it was. I really sucked! What I portrayed the pitch my voice was in was not what came through the mic! But I made it through the stage fright of being up there in front of a roomful of strangers. To rewind a bit, when Jimmy had me go up to sign us up, he told me to put down "Jimmy Choo" for the karaoke singer. Long story short, this is what I called his "stage name." You'll have to ask me how that came to be. I wanted a stage name, too. First, it was Sam Choo (since we are brother and sister). By the end of the night, however, I became...Destiny! The two of us were Destiny Choo. Again, you'll have to ask for to full explanation another time. Jimmy and I ended the night with Barenaked Ladies' "If I Had a Million Dollars." I did SOOOO much better the second time around. With such a goofy, fun song, it was hard not to be more relaxed. That, and the great Jimmy Choo gave me some pointers!