Blogiversary

It's been a whole year! I can't believe that has happened.

I'll bet no one remembers this:

Monday, January 7, 2008

Just getting started. I must admit, I haven't thought this through. I'm not even sure I really want to blog. Several people have urged me to do it and I'm not sure why.

Well, let's see. I do enjoy putting my thoughts on paper. I love photography, and think I would enjoy posting photos along with my random yammerings, just for my own enjoyment if nothing else. Guess maybe I'll give it a shot. I love reading blogs. Have a list a mile long, and feel as if I know these people who regularly come into my living room via their blogs. One is my youngest daughter and another my closest friend. Oddly enough I learn a great deal about those two by reading their blogs. Wonder what they may learn about me by reading mine?

Don't think they will learn much about me from this entry. It's going to be very short. I must gather my thoughts a bit and decide just what direction this will take - what purpose it will serve (if any). I assume some people will read it, if only out of curiosity, and I don't want to bore them to death. OK. I'll get back to you later.



What amazes me is that five people actually commented on that! Of course, four of them knew me: Lisa, my daughters Kitty and Ruth, and the girl who had been my maid of honor. The other was Ralph, from Homespun Headlines, who is still commenting on my posts today, God bless him. And my second post had three comments, two referred by those people. One was sent by Lisa: Laura from Somewhere in New Jersey, who is still a friend.

It was sort of an accident that I got started at all. I'd been stumbling around on line and hit the wrong buttons. When it told me I'd actually created a blog, I guess I was in a crazy mood, and said "What the heck - why not see what it would look like?" Oooops! Now I've done it! What shall I say? But I went on to write about my name, and my kids, and my husband, and then seemed to have a few more things to talk about so I just kept going. Here I am, 380 posts later, still talking.

It seems to be like therapy for me. I was old, and tired and discouraged and sometimes lonely. Now I'm not. Well, yes, I'm even older, but that's inevitable, isn't it? But now I have a whole community of people I feel are my friends. You just can't have enough friends! I love you guys! Thanks for being out there.

Good Friends

Good friends make such a difference in our lives. I've been blessed with many good friends throughout my life. Joan was my best friend from first grade, all the way through high school. We shared just about everything together for twelve years - all of the silly things, fun things, semi-tragic things, secret things, wonderful things that children and teens share. After high school, she went away to college and I went to work. We remain friends to this day, although in recent years it has become the occasional letter and a few pictures, a much less personal sort of thing.


In my twenties there were two very good friends, Nancy and Eileen, with whom I became very close. Interestingly enough, they were not friends with one another. They lived in very different worlds, and I was privileged to share both. I am very grateful to have had both experiences. Eileen was to become maid of honor in my wedding a few years later. And yes, I am still close friends with both, but long distance. One is in Arizona and one in Hawaii.


Early in my marriage I met Pat. She was the best friend among many during the years when we were raising our children. Mutual support with other mothers of small children can mean so much as we struggle with the myriad of problems and questions we have as we learn how to deal with these little people who are so dependent on us. Sadly, I am no longer in touch with Pat She moved far away and has chosen to cut off communication with old friends, following a family tragedy.


Two years after my husband's death, when we moved to New Jersey, it was like moving into another world and another life. The first real friend I made here was Wyetta. She has remained my closest friend for the past thirty-one years. I am constantly amazed at how much we have in common, despite our vastly different backgrounds. I miss having her nearby. She has been in hospitals or convalescent homes for two years now. I visit as often as I am able. I took this picture a couple of days ago.


Some years ago - I'm not sure exactly how many - Lisa came to work in the same office with me. We liked one another, and found that we could work together very easily. We became good friends, and remained so after my retirement, despite our age difference. Lisa is the same age as my children. Our relationship is somewhere between best friend and mother-daughter. I call her my "other daughter". We now live on the same street, and she looks out for me, worrying over me if my car is gone from the driveway too long or if I forget to turn out the outside light in the morning. She calls me every day, and I look forward to her chats. (And she keeps me up on the gossip from the old office.) We enjoy nature walks together, and she asks me to join her on lots of little expeditions. Every so often I manage to do something stupid, like locking myself out of the house, or locking my car keys in the trunk when I'm far from home. (Yes, it's true. I've done that.) But I can always call Lisa to come to the rescue.

Last night she came over and put up a new curtain rod for me. It's frustrating not even to be able to get up on a little step stool to do something like that, but she hung the curtain for me. I have no idea what it would be like for me if I did not have a friend like Lisa now. No - not "like Lisa". Just Lisa. She's one in a million.


And when she got up on that step stool, she said, "No pictures!" Oh well.