My Grandmother The Hoverer

After buying groceries to hunker down for the blizzard, I stayed at home.  Since the 'Rents were at work, I had the dining room table all to myself so I could write and work on these claim forms for them.

My Grandmother often walks around and sees what we're doing if we're not cooped up in our beds.  I want her to feel like she can talk to me because there is no else at home.  But sometimes she meddles in things when I just want her to leave the things around me be.

So she came out of her bedroom and saw me doing some things.  She asked me about ... something I didn't understand.  I love her, but swear to Buddha, 75% of the things we talked about my whole life I have not understood at all.  And this time it was 100%, although I was too busy to pay too much attention to her.  She went back to her bedroom.

I had to pack up because even though I told my parents I own a laptop, I still don't want them to see me working on my laptop -- I just think it creates more problems for me if they see that.  But when I was putting my computer away, I couldn't find the bubble wrap I use to protect my mouse.  Oh, shit.

I went to the kitchen trash.  There it was, a little envelope of bubble wrap.  I picked it up, but it was too late; there was something small and black sticking to one corner of it.  Yeah, it landed on something wet and nasty.  Poor little bubble wrap was gone.

When I was young I would've run to my Grandmother's room and starting yelling, "Why did you throw this away?  This was mine, I needed this!"  But I've matured (a little) and I learned that there's nothing to be gained by screaming and her for something she just does, even if it is kind of annoying.  Also, to be a little less mature, the way she would react would just piss me off even more.  So I decided to drop the subject.

Until I saw her walking out yet for no discernible reason again.  Look, she was there, I had the opportunity.  So I walked over to the kitchen just as she was throwing something in the trash.  I acted like I saw something familiar in there, and then I reached in and grabbed the bubble wrap.

(in Chinese) "Grandmother, I was looking for this."

"Oh!  Wash it, wipe it off with a towel."

"Ah, no, it's too dirty.  I'll deal."

That was my subconscious way of "getting back at her."  If I were a real man, I wouldn't half-ass it.  I would either retrieve the bubble wrap and clean it off myself without trying to make her feel bad, or not bring up the subject at all.

But no, I have my principles.