Busy weekend, Part II / Part Happy

My wife often gmail chats with me while I’m at work. One day I received the following chat from her: “I'm SO EXCITED FOR YOUR BIRTHDAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”

My birthday is November 25^th.

Then she says to me:

“I mean:

I"M SO EXCITED FOR YOUR BIRTHDAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1

I can't wait.

How can you stand the suspense?”

She wants to get my present, she says. She just can’t wait any longer. Absolutely can’t wait anymore. I think, “okay, she wants to get me something. I’m down with that. That’s cool.” It’s not entirely a surprise—she couldn’t take it any longer and we opened all our Christmas presents on the 13^th. We’ve told few people about that.

But the thing was, I couldn’t really think of what she’d get me. A game? She wouldn’t be excited about a game. Plus, the few that she knows about aren’t out yet. Maybe it’s something else. I’d think it may be clothes, but she knows that I wouldn’t be as excited about it. (At Christmas, I got her all toys, she got me all clothes. Guess we should have reversed it?)

She says she’ll be getting a good deal on it, too. Nope, still don’t know.

This last Friday I pick her up from work, and on that day she had informed me we’d be going out to get my present. She tells me we’re going to Circuit City. The only reason I don’t think it’s odd is because it’s got some deal, or whatever (turns out the promotion was over when she got in).

Now, Circuit City. This is exciting. It has to be something I want. It’s a toystore. Circuit City and the like are toy stores. I’m getting a new toy. What could it be?! What would she get me? The only thing I know that she knows what I want are some unreleased games (I think), and maybe a DS, and eventually an Xbox 360. But there’s no way she’d get me a 360—she likes watching TV sometimes and she had stated she doesn’t really want to get a console. In fact, she emphatically said no at one point, when I wasn’t as interested in it.

We arrive, and it’s awkward—she doesn’t want me to see it yet. So, I give her the car keys and go in to Target. The Electronics department is located ironically right next to the entrance; I browse through the systems and titles and I get excited and nervous. What is she getting me? What if it’s a disappointment? What if it’s more than I can comprehend? I then grab the little note she gave me to read while I was in Target:

“My Love,

Before we do anything today, I just want that you know that I really do SUPER love you.

I am so excited to do this little thing for you today. I just can’t wait. I really do hope that it will be as exciting for you as I want that it be.

I just love you and I want to make you happy.

So today, let’s just relax and have fun celebrating you.

All my love,

[Muschie’s real name]”

“Little thing” makes my heart pound—that’s Muschie-speak for “huge thing.” It’s a 360! It has to be! But how could it be?! This doesn’t happen! Why does she tease me! I play a lot on the computer, and the console is even more dominating! Women don’t BUY XBOX 360’s FOR THEIR HUSBANDS 12 WEEKS BEFORE THEIR BIRTHDAYS WHEN THEY ALREADY ARE A LITTLE TIRED THAT THEIR HUSBANDS PLAY A LOT OF GAMES!

After 15 minutes of quiet desperation, she retrieves me and we drive home. When we park, she makes me pop the trunk, where she’s put the gift, and I go inside. I go in another room, and she takes the gift in. She makes me close my eyes, and leads me to the couch, and on the couch is an Xbox 360. Elite.

I haven’t cried in a while. Nor have I been as excited. When I was 5, my bro and I got a Nintendo out of the blue—no birthdays, no Christmas, nothing. At 25, I got an Xbox 360 out of the blue for my birthday 12 weeks before the fact. It's like my life is starting over.

She also researched to know that the 360 elite is the most desirable version. And then we got a few games. And she bought an extra controller.

”I asked everyone at work about it,” she said, “so that I’d know to get the right one.”

“Wow. How’d they react to that? Someone had to be freaking out.”

”Yeah. Charles, the only single male there, likes video games. He was like, ‘Dang, wish I could find one single woman like that.’ I think it bothered him for the rest of the day, or maybe the week.”

I feel that Charles and I may be kindred spirits. The biggest difference between us is that one of us has a wife, and she bought him an Xbox 360 for his birthday.

Thank you, love. You really have no idea what it means to me.