Today, I got a call from a dear friend who I've known since high school. She called to remind me that her birthday was last week. Dont' get me, nor her, wrong here. It's a running joke with most of my pals. I don't keep tally as to who keeps up with my birthday. The people I expect to remember, I remind them. And, if I remember a friend's birthday, there's no guarantee that I'll consistently remember after that either. This is reciprocated by most of my friends, but is an unwritten rule with said birthday girl that we just remind each other. It certainly wasn't a call like this:
"Hey, I called to tell you it's my birthday you piece of crap. I waited and waited for you to call. And you didn't. Thanks. Thanks alot. The kids are fussy, I haven't taken my mood meds all week because I'm lactating, and my husband just beat me with a stick. My only hope while he was beating me was that you would call me to wish me a happy birthday. You whore."
Yeah, it wasn't like that at all. He doesn't beat her with a stick, he uses his hands.
The beauty of my friendships is that Birthdays don't matter. So much more matters than "Happy Birthday" with my peeps. What matters is the little stuff. As long as they celebrate the good moments: "You lost five pounds? Congrats girl! I'm mailling you some chocolate brownies to celebrate." As long as they giggle with me at my freaky moments, and help me in my sad moments, it's all good. As long as they tell me I'm wrong or when they are concerned about me. As long as I get THAT call, I'll waive the birthday messages, no problem. And I'm pretty sure my galpals feel the same about me. I'm hoping, because really, I can't remember a birthday to save my life. If I call one of my friends, or send a card, it's like a bonus treat, "Oh look, Les remembered my birthday this year! How silly!"
About a year ago, I called the birthday pal up one evening.
Her: "Hello"
Me: "Hey, it's me, what's up?"
Her: "I'm laying in bed reading my new cookbook. I got it for my birthday..."
Tears of joy almost broke out of my eyeballs. I thought I was the only superfreak who reads cookbooks in bed. That's the image I want to relax to. To fall asleep to a new perspective on fettucine alfredo, is a perfect slumbering moment. Maybe I'll even dream about it! I've been a closet cookbook-reader-in-bed for years. I've been known to wait for Ricardo to fall asleep before I pull my new cookbook out from between the mattress and box springs. But here she is, this friend I've known for 20 years, just as psycho about good tasting recipes as me. Sigh.It was such a pinnacle moment in our friendship. I'll never forget it. So Happy Birthday sweet friend.
That's how I roll
When I get to MI in Dec. we will get together "Yall" and we will have us some birthday cake!! We will call the Mom on the Rocks and we can all sing...to each other. While we eat cake she can go through the Sonic Drive thru and order herself something nice!
Oh Julz, don't worry, I don't say ya'll anymore! Between now and December, Mom on the Rocks will teach you how to correctly order from Sonic and then when you are in Michigan I can share the secrets of fantasizing about your cookbook!
Les, you made me actually shed tears of joy tonight. I am now off to bed to read my Amarillo Cookbook!
Just to clarify, I refer to you as Yallison. So, Julz was referring to you as "Yal" short for Yallison, not Ya'll, which by the way is a great contraption. I refer to you as Yallison with Julz (my other Michigan pal)because she said it one day instead of Allison (there's no Y in your name, just so you know), and it made me laugh so hard, I just renamed you.
Quite the comedian, aren't you??!!!!!
You should think about this, though. If Julz and I seem to pronounce it the same way, then who do you think is in the right? We are. You now live in the mid west. Before you know it, that Texas twang will be completely gone and you will become one of us!
Dear Yallison,
Two WRONGS don't make a right, hunny. And you only both talk that way because you are both from the same planet, the mitten one.
Jealousy shows itself in ugly ways!
Dear M.O.T.R.
We so enjoyed your visit. But I will especially remember the moment when you shared with me something that frankly I had only dreamed would happen. When you shared your Alfredo dipping sauce recipe it was truely a dream come true. I'm all weepy just thinking about it.