Category: Blogging Friends


Moms on the Town

October 28th, 2008 — 6:55am

What do you get when you bring together a bunch o’ mammas (w/o kids), some libation and designated drivers?

That was my Friday night with the DC Metro Moms.

(you might be wondering if that is really grey hair at my roots, but I swear it’s just one single bright light shining on my head and only my head–I swear!!)

Every time I get together with this amazingly beautiful, smart and hysterical group of women, I wonder who in the hell ever invited me (oh yeah, hi Jill, Beth and Tekla!!! *waves*).

I could have used another three hours to really get the chance to talk to everyone in there, but I was too busy stalking Aimee, Jessica, Diana, KC, Leticia, Stacey, Stacy and Kim; hugging on Sandie; patting the bellies of Victoria and Kristen; trying to prevent Devra, Sarah and Jodi from taking over the bar; embarrassing myself with tales of sex toys in front of Jess or yelling at Linda from across the room, I had a terrific time.


Of course I need to say a special thanks to Nicole for putting together such a great party and to GM for graciously sponsoring it.

(for the record this photo is right side up on my computer but Blogger isn’t cooperating–seems to appropriate for a photo of Dev anyway, doesn’t it?)

Oh and to my loser friends who couldn’t make their way out to Tyson’s on Friday (Steph, Joanne, Kimberly, Susan) well… see if I stalk you next time.

13 comments » | Blogging Friends, DC Metro Moms, Out with the Girls

Rethinking Friends

September 10th, 2008 — 8:12pm

My first in-depth experience with Washington, DC was the summer I lived here and interned. My college roommate grew up here and had spent the spring semester at American University so she introduced me to a number of her friends. There was one guy in particular that I clicked with and we spent a good deal of our time together discovering the city. We didn’t date we were truly just friends.

We went back to our respective schools at the end of the summer and once back into our daily routines–and well we didn’t speak again–until we ran into each other the following summer at a tiny train station in the middle of nowhere in Spain and again six weeks later in Prague. We vowed that we wouldn’t lose touch this time.

So that fall, both having graduated, he called me from NY to see what I was up to. I had returned from my excursion and was living with my parents in FL and trying to figure out my next move. He mentioned he was moving back to DC with a friend and wondered if I wanted him to find an apartment that had a room for me too. “What the hell!” I replied, and before I knew it I was driving to DC with all of my possessions hoping I’d find a job.

We lived together for three years. We visited each other’s families, we developed our own traditions and we shared a dog. I loved him like a brother, but we began to grow apart. We moved into our own apartments. We started seriously dating people and we spoke less and less. I got married and got a son not much later and my life spun out of control. He moved back to NY and we haven’t spoken in almost 8 years.

Tonight I looked him up on Facebook.

Social media and social networking have made it possible for me to meet incredible people, share interesting ideas and waste time trash talking over the internet during boring meetings, but are these people my “friends?”

It depends when you ask me.

My gut response is yes, but I think back to the friendship I had with my DC roommate or with college friends or folks from high school or middle school even and I wonder if the same definition applies.

The internet has made it possible for us to communicate with people we never see. Through blog posts, through email, in less than 140 characters we share our thoughts, but does that mean that we are friends?

Last night I had drinks with five people I met online and one I have gotten to know better online. We talked easily. We enjoyed ourselves and some of us stayed way later than we should have, but can I say these folks are my friends? What do I really know about them? What do they know about me? Would they notice if I hopped off my social networks? Would they check in if I did?

What about those long-lost friends that you can reconnect with through Facebook or Classmates or any other network out there? Can you revive a friendship that was? Should you even bother? Clearly there were reasons you fell out of touch in the first place. Is it better to leave the past in the past?

I don’t have any answers tonight.

I’m just going to go outside and ponder this all.

22 comments » | Blogging Friends, Friends, Social Networking

Friends

July 29th, 2008 — 8:38pm

Today friends are on my mind.

I just found out that my dear friend Lisa, who writes Midwestern Mommy, has cancer. She is 35. She has a little guy–a family. This can’t be. I wish I lived closer so I could do something, anything. Please go send her your thoughts. She’s much tougher than she thinks she is, but I imagine she’s going to need all the support we can muster right now.

I reached out to two friends today in desperate need to talk, and two friends were there for me. I want them to know how much their loving ears meant to me.

Redsy and D, thank you.

D, you let me know that I’m not alone when most people (you know who I mean) wouldn’t want to.

Redsy, you gave me a new perspective from which I now see potential rather than just barriers.

These three friends are on my mind today. I love each of you.

11 comments » | Blogging Friends, cancer-sucks, Frustration

There Are Days

June 2nd, 2008 — 8:50pm

There are days when your kitchen sink develops a clog and it’s a holiday weekend and 35 people are coming to your house so you run back and forth to use the guest bathroom sink while preparing the food for said guests–ignoring the fact that you will have no way to clean up after them when they leave at 3:00 a.m.

There are days when you read her and you almost wet your pants because holy crap is she funny, but then you secretly plot to steal her brain because you know you’ll never be that funny, but then you secretly thank the goddess of discount designer shoes that she walks this planet at the same time you do.

There are days when your six year-old mumbles the word “evaporate” as he’s drifting off to sleep so he can commit the new word to memory and your heart just explodes with pride, but then you remember five minutes earlier he was telling you about the “masagna” he had for dinner and you decide that he might not get that Nobel after all.

There are days when you don’t think your blogging is ever going to amount to much and then you get invited to this super-swanky, invite-only reception for the premiere of a new movie and you decide that you might not abandon your blog after all, until you get to the super-swanky, invite-only party and they play Kung Fu Fighting over and over and over again for two hours straight and there is no alcohol, so you decide that the party was secretly a punishment and you were invited because your blog sucks big black licorice-flavored turds.

There are days when your friend complains over email about all the traveling they must do over the summer and your inner bitch can be silenced no more so she sends a snide reply suggesting that the person have a terrific summer and contact her when they actually want to talk, but then your bitch rethinks her rudeness and cancels the reply before it’s sent. Still feeling pissy after the original reply is discarded, the bitch decides to send one anyway–just a bit snarkier this time–only to realize once that one is gone that they were both sent and now you just look like an idiot.

There are days when you can feel the scream begin deep in your stomach and as it rises you know that if you don’t figure out soon what your purpose in life is there is no way you’re going to prevent that scream from deafening those around you so you decide to tell your husband about it and he suggests you quash it by getting up earlier in the morning to make your children pancakes.

There are days you don’t kill your husband.

There are days when you are little and you think it would be cool to have a retainer or a cast or something neato like that and then you grow up and you trip on the sidewalk because apparently a single step down can be dicey terrain to negotiate and you break your ankle and you get a cast and then the cast comes off and your ankle still doesn’t heal and then you want to remove your leg at the knee and use the separated appendage to knock your orthopedist silly until he fixes you enough so that you can wear flip flops again, because damn it’s finally flip flop weather.

Yep. There are days.

23 comments » | blog reviews, Blogging Friends, Marriage, Motherhood, random thoughts, The Cool People

Love, Mamma Style

February 8th, 2008 — 10:15pm

The ever-lovely Heather from Oh My Stinkin Heck is inspiring us once again to spread some blogging love with a pre-Valentine’s Day exercise. With just minutes to spare, I wanted to get in on the lovin’ and I’ll start with our gracious hostess.

I never actually had a chance to sit down and talk to Heather at BlogHer–a situation I hope to rectify this year–but that didn’t stop me from noticing this beautiful women furiously typing away at her Mac. She had the warmest smile and most gorgeous eyes that I just knew she would be friendly. And I can attest through following her for the last eight months she is. She is constantly looking for ways to help her fellow bloggers out with useful advice and linky love–even little ole bloggers like me.

Next, I’m sending out big, gigantic smooches to the wonderful woman who put up with me as a roommate in Chicago. More than a year ago, I started reading the words of Canape at Don’t Take the Repeats as she chronicled the heartbreak of a recent miscarriage. The bravery of honestly sharing her emotions hooked me immediately, so you can only imagine the pure joy I felt when just weeks ago she delivered the beautiful Little Bird. I can’t wait to meet him, because I know he’ll be just like his amazing parents–kind, sincere and loving. And as further proof of Canape’s beautiful heart she is also the founder of Team WhyMommy.

Speaking of WhyMommy…how could I spread some love without mentioning the brave and beautiful Susan of Toddler Planet? The forthright chronicles of her battle with inflammatory breast cancer over this past year have brought attention to the disease throughout the blogosphere and beyond and inspired many of us to value our lives just a little bit more. Thank you Susan for sharing your story with us.

I don’t want to lead you to believe that all my blog reading is so serious. There are a number of bloggers who make me laugh out loud on a daily basis. Neil and his talking Penis over at Citizen of the Month is so worth the read. He’s recently shared his blog with his therapist–brave huh? Among the guys too there are Whit, Dorky Dad and Mitch McDad (who loves to blog about vibrators) who provide me with the dude side of parenting. Their blogs make me wish they would each move their families into the houses on my cul-de-sac. The neighborhood cookouts would be classic. As for the girls, Jessica, Jenny and Lotta may be responsible for buying me a new monitor in the not so distant future for all the diet coke that has shot (shat?) out of my nose while reading their posts and comments. Not only are they hysterical online but they are each the kind of chicas you want to hang out with once you meet them in real life too. I haven’t met Kristi yet but she too is going to need to pay up.

And of course there is no way I could be throwing around my love without mentioning a number of women who are near and dear to my heart. Have you ever met someone and known immediately that you would be friends forever?? Kristie and Lisa and I had been exchanging comments for some time by the time we met up in Chicago, but with that long weekend behind us, they will never be able to shake my stink. Real, down-to-earth, funny, smart and caring don’t even begin to describe these amazing women. Love you girls!! And though I haven’t met Sara, Megan, Andi, and Jennifer yet I just know I’m going to be stalking them for years to come. Consider this a warning girls.

If you would like to participate in Heather’s festivities, you still have a half and hour or so by my clock. Thanks again Heather for giving me an excuse to let just some of the terrific bloggers in my community how wonderful they really are.

PS–If you aren’t on this list and you regularly leave me comments, please don’t think I don’t love you. I do. I do. If you’re not on this list and you DON’T leave comments, why should you be on here?? just kidding

15 comments » | Blogging Friends, Holidays, Oh My Stinkin Heck

Tomorrow!

January 21st, 2008 — 3:22pm

The biggest surprise about blogging has been the incredible community that exists to laugh together, cry together, mock each other and when necessary bolster each other in times of need.

Less than eight months ago WhyMommy posted this on her blog. At the time, she was nursing her five month old, taking care of her two year old and had never revealed any personal information on her blog.

She had been diagnosed with inflammatory breast cancer.

Since the day of that post, she has shared with us her deepest fears, her physical pain and the emotional turbulence of living with cancer. She also treated us to her moments of joy and the triumphs of perserverance.
She’s given us so much through her words, and never once has she asked for anything in return except for our positive energy to support her battle with cancer.

Tomorrow is Susan’s surgery. She’s endured months of chemo and the accompanying exhaustion and pain. But that’s all over and tomorrow Susan goes in for one of the final steps of her treatment–a double mastectomy.

So today is the day that we might return just a smidgen of what she’s given to us. And I for one want her to know that I am here in VA cheering her on!!

If you’d like to send your wishes to Susan, write a post and title it “tomorrow” and link back to her.

Let her know how much love she has going in there with her.
I mean how can you say no to this incredible smile?

Soon to be cross-posted on DC Metro Moms.

9 comments » | Blogging Friends, cancer-sucks, DC Metro Moms, health

It Is Never Easy

January 20th, 2008 — 4:34pm

When the diagnosis first comes the emotions can be overwhelming.

When treatment begins a sense of hope begins to flicker.

When treatment begins to fail we say all the words we need to say.

Even though we prepare ourselves, even when we know it’s coming, then end always shocks the system.

This fine gentleman left our world yesterday, but not without leaving a gift for us all in his daughter.

Kris, you and your family are in my thoughts.

4 comments » | Blogging Friends, In Memorium, Love

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