I haven't written a vignette in a while, but I had fun with this one. Mine is a little on the silly side. “I don’t understand,” she said, one hand on her forehead, the other on her hip.“Look, I know you hate when I start mansplaining, but I wasn’t kidding when I said it was complicated.” He picked the phone up and started turning it about in all directions.

This year marks twenty years that Colin and I have been a thing. Our relationship has never really been about grand gestures or expectations of perfection so there’s no huge anniversary party planned. But I would like to take a moment to be sentimental. We started out as friends over 25 years ago, and to this day he is my best friend and confidant. There’s never been serious talk of a wedding, just joking around with Facebook’s algorithm and an occasional “what if”. And that’s okay. Neither of us are big traditionalists. At this point it’s almost a scary thought– if things are going well, why do something that could complicate it? Don’t want to jinx things! Plus, the thought of standing in front of people for vows- well, let’s just say neither of us are into public speaking. Twenty years, though! In 1999 when I started college, he was one of my first acquaintances. I was smitten by this witty, curly haired fella who hung out at the Quad and sometimes made it to Open Mic night at Mellow Mushroom. He had a girlfriend, and I had baggage, but we became quick friends. Our first “not-quite-a-date” set off a trend that would continue for many, many years. We saw Reign of Fire (dragon apocalypse ftw), but paths diverged and we didn’t see each other much for a few years. That said, we’re both still watching apocalypse movies (don’t even get me started on The Last of Us this week) and battling dragons. Then Myspace. Oh, blessed Myspace. I learned some basic HTML, shared way too many “about me” surveys, and Colin quickly found his way into my top eight. He, along with a few other close friends and I started going to bar trivia, a hobby we still enjoy. It’s a bit morbid, but we’ve always marked our anniversary as the week that Natalie Holloway went missing- it was a current events question at Caps, and that just became a core memory. For a few years, I played the role of “not a girlfriend,” but let’s be honest, I’m a catch and he eventually decided to keep me around. Things have not always been perfect, in fact, oftentimes they were far from that. I came with special needs kids, we both struggle with depression, and adulting in general is… kinda hard. But being friends first and foremost, laughing together, fighting zombies together, and just having each other’s back goes a long way toward having more good times than bad. It wasn’t always easy, but there’s no one else I’d rather spend the next twenty years with. I’ll wrap up with a couple of quotes about how we got here. Colin: “We wouldn’t be here together tonight if it wasn’t for rotten.com. Seriously. Butterfly effect.” Me: “The couple who plays L4D2 together, stays together.” Through the ups and downs, there’s no one I’d rather fight zombies with. I love you, Colin Richie.

Some days my shins feel like they’re on fire. It doesn’t matter if I’m still or moving. It really, really sucks. #fibroflare

Watching Dark Angel (1990), also known as I Come in Peace. Stars Dolph Lundgren as a smooth talking, strip club loving, roundhouse kicking cop partnered with a loser FBI agent who are trying to avenge his (Dolph’s) former partner’s death from a bad deal… while giant mullet wearing troglodite aliens are attacking half the people in town with a gun that shoots killer compact disks then using their bodies to farm heroin. I… think. I’m pretty lost, but the bad one liners are Oscar worthy.

Anyone have a DVD of Near Dark that I could borrow?

A few thoughts on Sinners. 1. Pay the extra few bucks to watch Sinners in IMAX. 2. Pay attention to how the camera moves and the color saturation. (It’s gorgeous.) Note when the screen grows and shrinks. 3. Left me thinking about the Ethics of Goblins. Are the vampires truly evil? Is it just a matter of perspective? I especially was intrigued by the choice of nationality of the primary antagonist given historical comparisons. 4. The PAST & FUTURE SCENE! Just wow. 5. I cannot wait to see what he directs next.

Sinners was SO GOOD. I’m usually not that into vampires, but this was a unique spin. Definitely watching again.

The save act just means that sensible people will now stop getting into traditional marriages. I would not marry if it meant losing my right to vote. I wouldn’t change my name even if I did marry, regardless.