Chapter 1: Change in Seasons and Burgatory
The next day, I met one of my other best friends, Carly Shay and her parents, Sam and Freddie, at Ritter's Diner on Baum Boulevard for breakfast after checking out of the mental hospital in Oakland. "Hi, guys!" I greeted my parents. "Hi, Angel!" Carly greeted back. "Are you feeling better?" "Yes, Carly," I replied. "I am feeling much better." "Do you feel satisfied now that we went to Ritter's Diner, Carly?" Mr. Benson asked. "Why would she not be satisfied?" I asked. "When Carly first met you, Angel, she always wanted to go to Ritter's Diner, but never knew where it is," Mrs. Shay explained. "Now, I know that the restaurant is in Shadyside," Carly stated. We all ordered omelets and home fries to eat with our meals. I ordered a Western omelet, Carly ordered a veggie omelet, Mrs. Shay ordered a Reuben omelet, and Mr. Benson ordered a Dirty South omelet. Later that day, we joined some of my other friends, Alex Russo, Justin Evans, and Max Greenwald at the Carnegie Library in Squirrel Hill to talk about the changing seasons. "Can you believe how hard it is raining outside today?" I asked my friends. "I know," Alex replied. "I was going to wear a skirt, but I thought that it was too cold." "This is exactly like September of 2004, where we had a ton of hurricanes in the Atlantic Ocean!" I exclaimed. "Florence is like Frances, Gordon is like Gaston, Helene is like Hermine, and Isaac is like Ivan." "Are you interested in hurricanes?" Justin asked. "Hurricanes can form during the fall and summer, but not during the spring since the ocean is still cold from the winter's chill," Max explained. "I was sad that summer was ending that I found it hard to go to work the next day!" "My parents have had seasonal affective disorder," Carly explained. "February is my most emotional month, especially after my birthday ends," Mrs. Shay admitted. "And March is my most emotional month, especially after my birthday ends," Mr. Benson agreed. "The only thing I hate about my birthday is ice on the ground, sometimes," Max admitted. "My birthday is in a very transitional month," Justin pointed out. "Thankfully, my birthday is in a sweet month," Alex admitted. After our discussion on the changing seasons and how it went from days in the 90s to days in the 50s, Alex, Justin, Max, and I went to Burgatory and met my mentor, Jenna Moser, along with her boyfriend, Matt Mifflin and younger sister, Jill Moser. I laughed at the humor on the walls of Burgatory. I ordered an All-American burger, Jenna ordered an Avocado-Mango Tango burger, Matt ordered a Caprese burger, Jill ordered a Sun-Dried Summer Burger, Alex ordered a chicken burger, Justin ordered a bacon cheeseburger, and Max ordered a mushroom burger with BBQ sauce on it. "I hate to say it, but this restaurant is not my cup of tea," Alex admitted. "Alex, didn't I convince you to get burgers after one of the football games, but you wanted to go somewhere else?" Justin asked. "Thankfully, it wasn't Burgatory," Max admitted. "I already baked a fruit cobbler for the girls to eat," Matt told us. "Yes, and they are at home eating roast chicken, seasoned rice, and green beans, which is much healthier than fast food burgers," Jill explained. "Are you guys still coming to the picnic at Highland Park next Sunday?" Alex asked. "Yes, we are," Jenna replied. "The girls are coming too, and we will bring grain salads." Pretty soon, Jenna, Matt, and Jill drove me back to my mom's apartment in Highland Park. "Thanks for a great day, everyone!" I thanked my friends. "You're welcome, Angel," Alex replied. "Bye, guys!" "Bye!"