The Diary of a Helpless Romantic

Dear Diary,Jan 1, 2007

Have you ever been in love, like the real kind, the kind they had in the movies in the 50s; where singing in the rain was a lifestyle and falling in love with your capturer was easy. Well I sure haven’t I can tell you that and that’s why I’m writing in this diary.

You see every year at New Years we, meaning my friends and I, make a pact. Now, this pact is made for only one person in the group and that said person usually could choose what the New Year’s resolution is going to be. However my friends, Suze and Chad, made it very clear I was not able to pick my resolution this year. They thought it would be in my best interest to pick for me, since my resolution always seem to be the easy ones, like losing 10 pounds from Christmas (that was my one 3 years ago).

If you must know my friends’ resolution for me was to finally get kissed. You see I’ve never actually gotten my first kiss. I know doesn’t that sound like Never been kissed. I’m 16, which is still a pretty young age, and I have never had my first kiss. I actually have never even been on a date as well. My friends have had all the above, hence their determination for me to experience this. Now I know what you’re probably thinking and it has to go along the lines as “You’re just a weirdo” or it’s “I don’t know why you’re so desperate”. For the first statement I’m really not a freak or a weirdo, I’m just how do I put this, reserved and not a blonde blimbo (although I do have blonde hair). For the second statement I’m not desperate at all, my friends are desperate enough for me!

For every resolution/pact we set down the rules, and we have to have at least 4 people testify for seeing the pact. I know it’s a complex system, but Suze’s parents are lawyers and you know how they are about their paperwork. So for this year’s pact we have the following rules:

Have to be dating or on a date with said guy (wouldn’t that be weird if you just kissed a guy randomly)

Have to truly want kiss (no forcing the kiss on the guy or the other way around)

Can’t be with a guy my friends disapprove of (aka womanizers)

Can’t be desperate in any way, shape, or form (don’t back the poor guy into a corner)

Have to truly and 100 enjoy the kiss (that’s just a given, no guy forcing you)

No onion breathe (or any other kind of breathe) on the guy (yuck!)

Has to be for at least 2 seconds (nonexistent kisses don’t count)

These rules have been looked over, and has been signed by yours truly, Chad, Suze, and Suze’s cute boyfriend Jeff. Jeff has actually been the signer on three pacts so far this being his third, so you do the math, that means they’ve been going out for three years.

On that note I should probably clear up our ages. Suze and I are 16, Chad is 17, and Jeff’s almost 18, in just a week actually. That means the trio (Chad, Suze, and I) are all sophomores and Jeff’s a senior. Charlie didn’t pass first grade (that’s why he’s in our grade being 17), because he miss spelled the word because, and we’ve all been friends since then.

These are the reasons above that I’m even thinking of writing in this diary. Suze said that I have to have some documentation of this time period (Lawyer talk). To quote her, “I feel the winds ah changing for you.” We’re all watched Pirates of the Caribbean too much, and it probably doesn’t help us that I use to live in a community called Port Royal on a street called Rum Row in Naples, Florida. Which in Suze and Charlie’s mind is close enough to the Caribbean for them living in Providence, Rhode Island. Funny thing on that too, because the reason we all became friends that fateful day in first grade was because no one would play pirates with us on the playground. As the saying goes ‘Birds of a feather flock together’ was entirely true in our case. We had, strangely enough, the exact same pirate books and we would play games or battle being our esteemed favorite pirates. I was Grace O’ Mally, because I am Irish. Suze would be Anne Bonny to my disapproval (I always thought she should’ve been Mary Reed, she was a cooler pirate), and Chad was Bartholomew Roberts, referred to as the " Great Pirate Roberts", but the real reason he took that name I feel was cause it was like the pirate in Princess Bride, aka the dread pirate Roberts. As much as Charlie tries to hide it I know he is secretly a Princess Bride fanatic.

As I just glace up from my writing I’ve noticed that I am way off topic and I don’t know where I was going with it. Well anyway I’m going to tell you a little about myself, since it just seems stupid not to.

Full: Elizabeth Marie O’Connell (Lizzie for short)

Age: 16

Birthday: Dec 18 (For everyone our there who’s reading this that’s a week away form Christmas, and it sucks to be a Christmas baby, trust me)

Family: Mom, Dad, 2 older brothers (who are both in college and away form the house thank God)

Friends: Susannah Baker and Charles Anderson (If you take the first O out of my name it’s the ABCs with our last name, and basiclly on pain of death can you call Suze by her full name)

Hobbies: Reading, tennis, soccer

Appearance:

- Blonde hair (I know how do you have a 100 Irish father and end up with blonde hair, well my mother is 50 Norwegian that’s how)

- Greenish/ bluish eyes (they change for day to day I swear)

- 5’6” (Norwegian height somewhat)

- I’m athletic, so that’s all that’s going to be said about my weight

Well I think that’s enough share time. Next thing I’m going to talk about is about our wild New Years’ Party, yes you heard my right. My parents stupidly allowed my brothers to bring over their college friends for New Years. So along with my brother’s friends (around 10), my parents also invited their friends over (around 15) and I invited my friends (3, Suze, Chad, and Jeff) On that note, my friends and I watched Pirates of the Caribbean and Narnia in the den upstairs to count down the time, while my parents had their party on the main floor, and the brother’s party was in the basement, where they could cause the least damage. So, when my friends and I woke up about 10 am, and went downstairs to get breakfast, we were quiet surprised to find all my brother’s friends and my brothers had migrated to the main floor of our humble abode. Wesley, my eldest brother, was passed out clinging to a bag of sparklers and George was had something written on his forehead. The rest of that group were doing something of the similar sort. I “lightly” kicked Wesley in the stomach to see if he was still alive, and got a simple “No go away Mom.” Chad then said taking out his phone, “Well I guess they had a fun night! I can’t wait to blackmail them!”

Suze then stated, “If I remember correctly Fred (her name for Charlie when she’s amused, which is mostly always) last time you blackmailed them, they threatened you.”

“You do know that they can beat you up Chad,” I stated walking over to the kitchen with the rest following nudging people out of the way.

“That’s a risk I’m willing to take my dear,” Chad replied.

“What ever floats your boat,” I shrugged looking through my fridge for food. Finding nothing I turned towards my friends, “Does anyone want to go to Ihop?”

“God woman I was waiting for you to ask,” Suze said slipping out of one of my family’s barstools and heading towards the stairs while parting the sea of bodies again with Jeff quietly following her.

“Are you coming Chad?” I asked. Chad was staring right now staring out of my kitchen window looking at the snowfall. I walked over to him and looked at the spot he was staring at.

“Huh… Oh yea,” Chad replied quietly

“What’s yup Chaddie?” I asked hopping up on the counter.

“I’m secretly planning the destruction of the world with the energizer bunny.”

“Oh is that all,” I smiled at him, “You can tell me what’s up you know.”

“Oh yea I know, but it’s more fun to watch you and try to make me spill,” he said quickly leaving the room. I chased after him yelling, “That’s mean Chad!” Wesley then mumbled as I passed him, “No stop bunnies. Evil bunnies” I truthfully had a hard time not laughing.

After changing and getting ready to go out in the snow, we quickly got into Jeff’s car and made our way noisily to Ihop, the home of the pancake gods. When we all get into a car together, I feel like we’re all declaring WW3. You see we all have our driver’s license, but to save gas we all ride together. However, we always argue. You see we usually take Jeff’s car, and Chad and Suze both likes shotgun, but Suze always gets shotgun in Jeff’s car, cause she’s his boyfriend. I couldn’t care less were I sit, however I hate country music with a passion, so Jeff plays it just to piss me off sometimes. So you have Jeff and I arguing about the music, and Chad whining about shotgun. It’s hilarious!

So, when we finally arrived at the Ihop I was glad. Not because of the arguing, but because my stomach was growling. This Chinese family, the Wangs, owns the Ihop, so they’re always open on the holidays, like New Year’s, and they know us personally, too. As we entered to building Mrs. Wang spots us and cries, “My friends how you are?” It’s cute, they moved here about 2 years ago and she still gets her statements jumbled, just like French and me.

“I’m very well Mrs. Wang. How about you?” I asked as she takes us over to our spot. Yes we have our own spot. Ihop to us is like the Coffee Bean to Friends.

“Oh can’t complain. Business very good,” she said sitting us down.

“Well that’s good Mrs. Wang,” Chad replied.

“How is Tokko, Mrs. Wang?” asked Jeff. Tokko is her son, around 24, that always gets into trouble. I swear that every time we come here Tokko has done something horrible again.

“Tokko yet again get into trouble,” she replied.

“Well that’s too bad,” Suze says, “I hope he didn’t do anything too bad.”

“No Tokko not that bad of a boy, he mean no harm. The Usual?”

“The usual,” we all reply. Mrs. Wang walks off.

“I so wish my child is never like that,” I said.

“There is great possibility that it would be, I mean look at your brothers, what kind of genetics is that?” Suze asked.

“I don’t know,” I replied, “So, when are we putting our operation into plan?”

“Well stage 1 is wait for the guy,” Chad replied.

“Wait for the guy, Chad?”

“Yes, patience is a virtue,” replied Chad.

“Lizzie I don’t think you should stress this,” Suze said, “Just wait for it to come to you.”

“Ok,” and I shut up on that item. We then all got our meals, which of course was pancakes, and drove home shortly after that. My brothers had by the time sent everyone home and cleaned up, when we arrived at my home. George still has the thing on his forehead after many washings tonight. It’s hilarious. I think it’s time I went to bed now, I’m tired.