So here I am, on a plane again.(Needless to say, the entry is only being posted once I get to an Internet connection; I'm just writing it on the plane.) Once again, easy, fast check-in and security, only I had to go through security twice since I went through once, got to my gate, and then found out that the only Starbucks was on the other side. And it seems that one of the security people actually turned my computer on before closing it up, so it's been on standby for hours, draining out some of the battery. But I only need it on the plane to type my entry, since Chicago is on the screen and headphones; no need to watch my own movie or play a game. Oh, how I love computers.
And speaking of nifty toys, when the car came to pick me up for the airport this morning, it was a stretch limo. It was very cool, of course, and I'm sure the girls will be jealous, since we all went to the airport for Florida crammed in the back of your basic Lincoln. And here I was, just little old me, in a nice big limo. I've never been in one before; this time probably would have felt more elegant if I hadn't been wearing my usual jeans.
Anyway, I'm flying to Denver with a huge contingent of Boy Scouts, maybe a third of the passengers on the plane. They're on their way to Philmont; if you have Boy Scouts in your family, you know what Philmont is. If not, it's a big camping/hiking center in New Mexico that draws Boy Scouts from all over the U.S. (maybe elsewhere, too) every summer. How do I know this, being the mother of two girls?
Because R, after being a Girl Scout through grade 9 (I was the leader), joined the Boy Scouts thereafter, becoming a member of what is known as a Venturing Post, which is co-ed and for high school age people. Her best friend's father was the Scoutmaster, and he couldn't wait until his daughter and her friend were old enough to join. His son was already an Eagle Scout, as was he. This is still denied to girls, but they dug in and camped along with the toughest of the boys, and had super opportunities. Two years after they went to Philmont, they went to the Boy Scout World Jamboree in Chile! But that's another story.
Something comforting about being on a plane full of Boy Scouts. You know that if anything were to happen, you'd be surrounded by people who don't panic, who follow directions, and who've been taught to think on their feet and be helpful in a crisis. And they look so damned dependable in those uniforms, even with the goofy shorts.
And now a little Friday Five:
1. Do you remember your first best friend? Who was it?
It was Patti. Her mother was my mother's best friend, her brother my sister's age, and our families were very close. She's two and half years older than I am, but we were friends virtually since my birth, or at least, once I became someone she could talk to and play with.
2. Are you still in touch with this person?
Not really so much. Our mothers still talked on the phone weekly until my mother died, and then my father would talk to her (the father died during my mother's illness.) Patti married well and moved to Arizona, whence she sends one of those bizarre newsletters every Christmas. When her father died, I sent a card with a note, remembering our childhoods together and sharing some memories of him. I believe that when my mother died, she called my father to express her condolences. But when my father died this past February, she called me, and we talked for an hour. It felt very natural and easy. The last time I saw her or spoke to her was at my wedding, which is 26 years ago next week.
3. Do you have a current close friend?
I am blessed to have more than one. My sister, of course. I tend to think of Chum as my closest friend (we teach in the same school), but there is also OldFriend and Colleague, and E, whom I don't see as much since she retired. I've written some about my friends before here.
4. How did you become friends with this person?
As said, Chum and I work together in the same school and were co-advisors to a club for 15 years; that's how we initially met. OldFriend and I grew up across the street from each other. When E started teaching at my school -- she's about 12 years older than I am, but I was there first, she came back to teaching when her kids got bigger -- we just found each other and bonded.
5. Is there a friend from your past that you wish you were still in contact with? Why?
Well, this is just the question I've been trying to answer for months and months (not to mention years and years), but I could never get the words out right. There are many.
- Jessica
- Carrie, who was my other best friend as a kid, along with Jessica.
- Bob, and Bob, who went to college with me when I lived at home and commuted for my last two years. These were two funny guys, a little older; one had been in the Army during Vietnam but was stationed in Hawaii, the other had come up #1 in the draft lottery and was on a plane to Europe the next morning. I knew them afterwards, after Bob #2 had come home, gone straight to a recruiting office and enlisted, and then served.
- Bea, who I used to work with, and was like a substitute mother to me when I was first married and my own mother was going through a bad bipolar low and was mostly unavailable. But Bea seemed to think that, because I was younger, it was my exclusive responsibility to keep up with her, and not a two-way thing. So we drifted.
There are a few others, I think, mostly M, a best friend during the college years; we travelled to England together back then. I emailed her a few months ago after running into her sister, and she wrote back once, but hasn't answered since then. I do miss her. I'll try emailing again this summer and see what happens.
--------------------------------------------------
I'm watching not a thing
--------------------------------------------------
last ::
next
Sweet Sorrow - 06.12.2007
So ... - 12.19.2006
Christmastime Is Near - 12.18.2006
Fifteen Years - 12.17.2006
A Message From Our Sponsor - 12.16.2006
|
