I have a drink every Friday, no matter where I am or what I’m doing, as a toast to two irreplaceable human beings in my life. We may not always get to chat on the phone or even hang out now and again because the laws of life have dictated we remain many hundreds of miles apart, yet that doesn’t negate nor dictate our closeness and fondness and trust and belief in one another – essentially, our friendship.

We started a bond too many years ago to count that is a living breathing thing. It has ups and downs and gaps and harmonies, but never absences. Having that drink and sharing it with them, wherever they are, reminds me of that.  52 drinks celebrating births, mourning loved ones, battling flu, making fun of one another, making fun with one another, playing Fantasy Football, traveling the states, sharing career frustrations, dealing with family matters, building things, moving out and moving on… 52 drinks that I’ve had with my friends and I wouldn’t trade a one of them for the world.

So far, we’ve continued our pact, toasting to one another’s day, accomplishments, or just each other. It’s an appreciation of our history, a celebration of our present and a hope for our future. Missing you guys terribly, but loving you all the same – to Chelle and Darewood — Happy Festive Friday, my dears!

My 52 moments shared with Chelle and Darewood this last year.

The age old question- If you could go anywhere in the world, with no restrictions, where would you go? I usually tout the typical go-tos: Scotland, back to Ireland, Fiji (because who doesn’t say Fiji?), Chicago… Everyone has a list of where they’d jet to if money and time were of no consequence.

The hilarious thing is, if I was asked that question today, my answer would be Fort Wayne, Indiana. I NEVER in a million trillion years would have EVER thought that Fort Wayne, Indiana would be my answer to that question. If you’ve ever been, you know how completely hilarious that is. It might be the second largest city in the state, but that’s not saying much in a region consumed by cornfields and basketball hoops.

The thing is, I spoke to Chelle (my best best friend in the whole world) on the phone, and I realized how much I miss her and how much we need best friends in our lives. I also realized I haven’t seen my best best friend in over a year. That kinda sucks, really.

Awesome best friend moment. Sucks it’s been a year.

We always have such an amazing time together. We have inside jokes and we laugh at everything. We have a rich history and sometimes it just feels so nice to speak to someone who’s been a part of that history (and who never judges that history because they have one, too).

After winning tennis sectionals back in the day.

About to head out for a fun night in Chi-Town.

We do totally stupid and random things together because we think it’s funny. Seriously. Totally stupid and random stuff. For example, we picked an arbitrary day and drove all of the way to Oregon, Ohio because we found it on a map and because it was random and stupid and because we wanted a road trip like Thelma and Louise (minus the Brad Pitt prostitute thing and violently driving off a cliff together, of course). To O-r-e-g-o-n, O-h-i-o. Let’s just say it’s exactly what you’d imagine and we couldn’t stop giggling the entire time we were there. We also ended up in Michigan on the way home, but that’s a story for another post.

We can tell by the tenor in our voices how we’re feeling or what sort of a mood we’re in. We know our fake smiles from our genuine ones. We can sit in comfortable silence. We can look at each other and have an entire conversation about whatever’s going on around us without even speaking a word. It’s a really cool thing to have that kind of a connection with someone.

In talking to her, I just kept thinking about how I wished I was in Fort Wayne, having a glass of wine with my favorite girl, because though this can be a wonderful time of the year, it can be an extremely stressful time as well. Best friends are needed for those stressful times. Thank goodness time and distance are never factors when it comes to the tightknit bonds of our finest friendships.

Of course it stinks I live about 650 miles south of Chelle, and I can’t just hop in my car and be at her house in a few minutes, but that doesn’t affect our friendship. In fact, sometimes a great distance like that can close some pretty sizeable gaps.

So today, this December 12^th of 2014, let it be known that I would be happy to be sitting somewhere in Fort Wayne, Indiana with Chelle by my side, sipping some Shiraz or maybe sharing a donut because sometimes the day dictates that you just have to have a donut.

For my lovely, hilarious and often uncouth (which is why I adore you) best friends Chelle and Darewood. Keep doing random stupid stuff, my friends. 

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