Just the way it is

It's Thanksgiving, and yes, I don't eat animals so it's "Happy Tofurkey" day for me, fine, laugh-- whatever! I don't care. Really.
But what I do care about is my friends. My family of course, too, my three stooges and everyone. But I think I might be the most blessed person on the planet, or maybe the entire galaxy. I have the best friends.
I have the old friends who have been my friends forever, since high school or middle school or whatever. We talk all the time, we play on facebook and email and the wicked scrabulous game when we know very well who grew up on scrabble and who will win, but we play to be together. And the old friends who turn up after decades and somehow still matter because we never stopped loving them, we just didn't know where to find them.
And the new friends who are family even though it's only been a few years. We've been through too much to have anything ever pull us apart. We'll be there now, forever. Just the way it is. And our kids will grow up together, and dance at each other's weddings. And I can just hope that some of them will marry each other and we'll be family for real.
And we'll have holidays and birthdays and who knows what all that cements us all together. Just the way it is.
How can I not spend the whole day in the deepest "thank you" prayer I've ever offered? I have to. Make the gravy and the potatoes, baste the big dead bird who never did anything to you....and I'll be saying it under my breath. "thank you". Not to the bird, although him too. But to everyone I love, everyone who matters. All of you. "thank you."
Just the way it is.

cheezeballs

So, don't be mad, I was just playing on facebook. Yes, we can use multiple social networking sites. It's so interactive and easy to play with your friends, in easy little bits through the day. I mean, I love the long conversations in person or on the phone, that's great. But to just be able to poke people and they know I'm thinking about them, I love them, it's all good. I'm still breathing even though I'm half way through the crazy novel now, I still care.
I was creating a new "superlative" for my friends. I did "most likely to throw cheezeballs".

Remember cheezeballs? Little things that aren't really cheese, get the z in cheezeballs. And they are round but they're probably not actual food. Anyway, I had this lovely vision of hanging out in a cruddy one bedroom apartment for a party. A post college party, so there was beer, and of course, cheezeballs. And somehow someone started throwing them to other people. Not whipping them hard, a soft lob, meant of course, to be caught right in the mouth, no cheezy mess, and eaten.

Funny, now, 20 years later we're still throwing easy ones to each other, we're still in one big circle, although it circles the continent now. We're still together. And forever we'll always be the cheezeballs. We've added and amended spouses, we had nine cheezebabies. We've moved all over the globe. But we're still us, we still love each other. And when one of us gets stuck, the others come rolling out, fast as we can, to help.

We really are the cheezeball family.

Insanity

I'm so stiff, and my butt just hurts. I haven't hung out with my friends for a week, I walk past them and try not to make eye contact, they might talk to me for too long, and then my schedule would be all messed up. Scurry, scurry. The house has gone from comfortably cluttered to a garbage house that would probably make the evening news if anyone reported me. And unless you eat tofu and rice, there is no food. I walked in the house early this morning and glanced up, the stars were beautiful. Yes, yes, but I had to get to the computer. Word count, time's ticking. December is just three weeks away. And I'm writing a novel. It's that crazy Nanowrimo (http://www.nanowrimo.org/) and I'm totally hooked. My "novel" is complete crap and I can't imagne that other than people who really love me and my kids who hack my user and read without permission (I know who you are!) no one will read it. But, God it's fun! The characters have this life that they channel through me and it just goes into the words. It feels a little odd, but very cool. Maybe like having aliens inhabit your body. Kinda slimy, but good!

Nanowrimo lousy first draft novel excerpt...but you’re welcome to peek!

As her friends ate dessert, Kristi got antsy and stepped outside to browse the shop next door; "The Cow's Outside". As she reached into her purse to get out the lipgloss, she felt her phone vibrate. It was Jake—her heart jumped. Should she answer? Why was he calling her? Was everything OK? As soon as she wondered if he was OK she had to answer it. Waiting for a voice mail wouldn't do. "Hey baby!" she tried to sound happy and breezy and not a bit flustered.

"Oh sweet Kristi! So good to hear your voice! How are you? I miss you! Can I come hang out at the beach with you guys tonight?! I can be there in about three hours. I'll bring dinner!"

That's Jake. Always going 25 million miles a minute.

"Hi!" Kristi said. She kind of didn't know what else to even say.

Jake chuckled. She could almost see him shaking his head, messy hair flopping back and forth. His sweet smile tucked into his sweet face. "Sorry. Too much! First, how are you? I feel like you've been gone three weeks!"

"I'm OK, it's fine. Relaxing."

"And sweetie, are we OK about the other night? I mean I know we wouldn't usually sleep in the same bed in our underwear or anything, but it was so late, and we drank so much and it just felt so nice to hold you in my arms and fall asleep."

Kristi bit her lip. It had been really nice. Even just for what it was; her dear friend holding her, his fingers on her back, gently caressing her. Her face tucked into his neck, head resting on his shoulder. Warm skin. It had been nice.

"Oh yeah, don't even think about it. You were the perfect gentleman and you brought me coffee in the morning which gets you five gold stars and a pat on the head." Kristi touched the hand knit scarves, the olive green one would look so nice on Jake.

"Good, I'm glad. I love you sweetness. I don't want it to get uncomfortable between us. So whaddya think? Should I hop in my car and drive out? The kayak is already on. Everyone could take turns paddling. I'd make stew on the fire or bring you some salmon, we could grill. I'd be there before dinner."