"Bye Holes!"

It's interesting when a group of people become friends and in drunken and sober states begin to give each other nicknames. Most of the time, no one outside the "circle" understands or finds the circle's nicknames amusing, but, once in a while, you have a moment of clarity (as I've pointed out before) that most people are freaks and just don't let on that nicknames are funny - and they do understand. K and I had one of those such moments on Friday.

Our friend Emily, a travel nurse, left this morning for her next life-saving assignment in Seattle. :( So, of course, we needed to have a party! And I LOVE surprise parties. I rule at pulling that crap off. So, all day on Friday, K and I ran around town and planned us a non-theme-themed surprise party. What this means is, we ran into Party City and just bought anything and everything that we found amusing and funny - which is about 1/2 the damn store. (Although, nothing in the clearance bins are EVER amusing and funny.)

So, after walking out with 48 balloons (getting those in the Ford Escape was an awesome experience), giant syringes, party favors, bobble head hats, and OF COURSE "Hello My Name Is..." nametags, we had to make out final stop at the grocery store to pick up the "custom cake". On our way, we pondered (while getting suffocated by the 48 balloons) what to write on the cake. Nothing mushy, because we're not a mushy group. Hmmmmm. And then it hit us.

Rewind.

A few months ago, a couple of us girls were out and about having a good ole' time. Somehow, and it's a little hazy now, we began referring to each other as "Em-Hole" and "Ka-Hole" and "Steph-Hole" and "Rach-Hole", etc. Basically (not that it's too hard to figure out), we all wanted to be "holes" because at the time, it was hysterical. So, the easiest way to do that was to ad the first syllable of your name to the word "hole". Genius, I tell you. So, we proceeded to run around for the last couple months IN PUBLIC referring to each other as holes. Mature, yes.

Back to present.

So, while considering our fabulous, brain science nicknames for each other, we decided to write a single line on the cake: "PEACE OUT HOLES!" It was perfect I tell you.

K and I wandered into Albertsons (the local grocery store for those of you out of state) and b-lined it to the bakery. Wouldn't you know it, an older tiny lady was behind the counter. I asked her if she could write something on a cake, but, she had to promise not to laugh at us. She replied with "I've seen it all."

So, I said, "Ok, please write 'PEACE OUT HOLES!'"

The glimmer of recognition in her eye was obvious and she busted out with the last thing we expected to hear, "ME AND MY FRIENDS USED TO CALL EACH OTHER HOLES!" Um, huh?! She lunged into her story about how her and her friends, back in the middle ages or whatever, used to call each other "holes". If was quite a moment - the generations of yesterday and today meeting and bonding over "holes". A small tear came to my eye. (Perhaps it was from K pinching the crap out of the skin on my arm to keep herself from laughing.)

After our Hallmark "Hole" Moment, we thanked her for her help and walked about 20 yards away when she yelled out, in the middle of the store at the top of her little old lungs, "BYE HOLES!!!!"

It was definitely a moment K and I will cherish in our memories forever. And only in LA would that EVER happen. I bet we could have said that we call each other "bitches and hos" and the little old Albertsons lady would say, "Me and my friends used to call each other bitches and hos!"

But, it was a moment frozen in time where the holes of the world united and walked out of Albertsons with the best going away cake EVER, which then led to the best going away party ever.