11.15

I remember hating this book. I still do. Actually, I don’t know why I’ve kept it so long. There is no point in keeping any of this crap. No one cares what my elementary school grades were. Especially me. I don’t care. I never will. And whomever this book was meant for will never care.

At one point, I did fill everything out. It’s just full of simple questions and some space for a school picture. Maybe my mom forced me to start filling it out, because I recall, even while I was writing in it, hating every second I spent doing it. And I’m pretty sure the answers were as facetious as I could muster.

I’m not sure what my mother enjoyed about having these for all of her children. Maybe it was a tool for her to bury her guilt; she could focus on preserving the memories instead of actually watching them happen. That’s something my dad has always hated her for. Always hiding behind a camera because she doesn’t know how to show her pride.. if she even had any. It could have been jealousy.

10.15

I remember being allowed to pick out one thing in this gift shop after dinner with my grandparents. I was extremely young when I used to go out with them. And we’d always go to the same place. Our IHOP used to be a small cafe type restaurant. I can’t really remember much about it, but I know I loved their pumpkin pie. That’s how dinner always ended. My free kid’s dessert and coupon to the gift shop.

This store used to look a lot different. It’s been through two separate renovations, and it looks nothing like what I recall from my childhood. I’m pretty sure they don’t even have what I used to pick out with my coupon. It was this puzzle type book, with some sort of magic marker. I guess it was made for the joy of parents, because those are the people who usually have to wash the crayon/marker/paint out of the clothes/walls/limbs. I didn’t mind. I must have enjoyed it considering I went straight for that every time I got my store coupon. It’s just sad to see the surroundings change so much.