At Least They're Committed

There are times as I sit in isolation surrounded by people I feel like yelling at the top of my lungs, “I DO HAVE FRIENDS, YOU KNOW!” But it might sound as if I’m trying to convince myself and I suppose during periods in which I’ve not gotten together with friends for a while, one could argue that is the case. But weeks such as this one past and this one coming up are a brilliant reminder of how truly fortunate I am to have so many beautiful friends.

Brian was in town Monday so we did lunch and then all went out after the ELI reception and played a wildly politically incorrect card game and laughed a great deal and a couple people maybe got a little wasted but I wasn’t one of them and it’s all good because I have been that person before and everyone just takes everyone’s “moments” in stride in that group. Brian calls it “the perfect storm.” And on that note, Storm joined us and it was his birthday and everything. Brian and I agreed later we didn’t get nearly the time we wanted to catch up — lots of people around, lots of people wanting his attention or mine — but if nothing else those amazing hugs will sustain me for the next year.

Micheline’s retirement celebration at Hacienda Colorado last night was like a family reunion. All of our side of the family were there: Charlotte, Danielle, Carol, Julie, Caitlin and Tonya; and some of Micheline’s other-life family, in Vickie, Diane, Sharla and Laura. What a turn-out! And she’s very deserving of all that love and support. She’s a hard worker and a trooper and she has persevered through

many tough times and there were times when we only had each other as support and she made it and so maybe I can, too.

Charlotte summed it up perfectly when she emailed the next day: “It was indeed lovely. What a powerful group of women were collected there.” Indeed.

Darla was going to come over today, but the weather is iffy and she’s not up for it emotionally so she called last night and we talked for an hour instead and we laughed a lot and only lamented a little.

Ellen on Friday sent me a photo of the beach we’ll be camping out on next week and the water was bright blue and the sand was a faded tan and white. I know it’s not healthy, but I hope to be darker than the sand by this time next week. Once a year can’t hurt, right? I leave at 5 a.m. Wednesday morning and fly back Sunday afternoon. And I took Tuesday off, too, in part to pack and prepare for our annual Fat Tuesday dinner, and in part to avoid the birthday lunch at work where someone might actually realize that they blew off my birthday entirely this year — despite having asked me when it was before and after and pledging to get a date on the calendar — and then it would be awkward.

Which brings me back to my point. I might sometimes feel like shouting out that, hey, my friends are better than your friends, but I instead sit back and think about all our great times and all the fabulous hugs and it’s all mine, nobody else needs to know or care about that.