F.R.I.E.N.D.S.

Friends are those rare people who ask how we are and then wait to hear the answer. ~ Ed Cunningham

Aren't there some people in your life, that if they weren't there you would have big gaping holes in your mind, heart, and soul? I found myself surrounded by these people all weekend. Friday morning breakfast was an eclectic group. Congratulations to my friends' daughters Amy Williams and Beth Flick on making homecoming court. And once again I couldn't bring myself to say no to bringing my telephoto lens and snapping some pictures of them on Friday night. Thankfully the court was announced after the band show at half time or Sue and Nancy would have found themselves the proud owner of my camera equipment for the rest of the game. Cuz when it rains it pours for our poor football team and I'm sure there were just a few loyal parents still in the stands for the finale 63 - 8.

Friday afternoon around 3pm we started our office parking lot party. I met and fell in love with Michelle Fields from Pathfinders. (Assisted living help for the elderly) She is a colorful conversationalist, vibrant, hyper, passionate, and just plain fun to be around. The first thing that made us click was that we had hurriedly grabbed red and white picnic tablecloths, etc. for the party only to decide midstream that the whole affair needed a fall foliage flair. Busy as we were that day, she dropped everything and came back with pumpkins, Indian corn, and gold, green and brown accessories. We would have had to have twice the alcohol to declare the party a success if we would have compromised and gone with the red and white. After chatting for quite some time with Michelle (this was supposed to be a get acquainted social)

I came to the conclusion that no one else that works in my building could be quite as engaging as her so I huddled in the corner and caught up with Marti Bourdon. We have been struggling to have breakfast on a regular basis this year, but because of our long-standing friendship, we can usually reconnect without missing a beat. We both agreed that if one more person says to us...."better start getting used to the 'ole empty nest, because their senior year will be over before ya know it"....we'll have to bitch slap them.

So then it's on to the game, and before we could even dig out our blue and white pompoms and before I could warn Mark to save his $5. and meet us at the Station it was 49-0. Sara Flick, and Melissa joined us in the stands and made the mistake of asking the innocent question, "who are we playing, anyway?" Her dad's pat answer was Notre Dame. This just did not sit well with Kate Wiseman, and being the good sport that she is, went on the defensive for our poor, little sailors. Her strategy is to have a predetermined team that we would put on the schedule every year so we could at least win homecoming. It all sounded good, and she should have just quit while she was ahead, her suggestion...."the multi-state-winning-championship-Ravenna Bulldogs. God bless her!

The Station was good food and fun, as always, and recognizable fans kept arriving with more and more devastating news in the form of football scores. Diana Hosko joined our party and gave us the last and final count. Enough said. Last year's Melissa-friends were waiting for us after the game. It was winding up at around midnight, as usual, and as much as I wanted to stay up and chit chat, catch-up, make fun of the Sailor's Log, and listen to Melissa whine about how it's just not right to still be in high school, I was friended out. Don't be strangers.