May 23: Where's the love?

Where's the love, you ask? It’s right here. My self-imposed assignment today is to write about some of the people in my life and why they’re special. Notice I’m not doing my husband or kids because that’s just too dang easy. Also, I’m goin’ alphabetical on yurass, just so no one wonders how they fit into their place in the list.

• Alisa, who is sort of a former coworker and now a good friend. Here’s what I love about Alisa: I can admit something totally embarrassing to her (“I haven’t dusted in three months”) and she says, “Oh, I’m so glad I’m not the only one!!” She and I can talk for hours and never run out of things to say. We have a similar sense of humor; in fact, it’s almost scary. She’s the only person I text message during “The Office.” Now that she’s a mom, we have even more in common and that makes her even more special to me.
  
• Annalee is a former coworker. We became moms roughly around the same time. It’s amazing how much you bond with someone over your children. Although we haven’t had as much contact over the last couple years as we wished, we’re planning to get caught up sometime soon. Not-so-trivial trivia: she’s beautiful, and it’s not just me who thinks so. She was once Miss Washington and competed in the Miss America pageant!
  
• April is one of my best friends and has been since high school. She was also one of my roommates in college. April is the type of person who is impossible NOT to like. She and her husband are Vic’s and my favorite traveling companions because we have a lot of the same kinds of travel interests and none of us want to rollerblade all over San Diego at the crack of dawn. Now that our children are close in age, we have even more fun during our time together. We’re hoping to board a Disney cruise ship together sometime in the next couple years. April is one of the nicest and funniest people I know, and I adore her.
  
• Cassie is, among other things, my new favorite poker playing pal. Her daughter and Katie are in the same first grade class, and her son and Jack are in the same preschool class. She’s a fun person to spend time with and I look forward to getting to know her better. After losing her husband earlier this year, I also now think of her as incredibly brave and strong, or at least good at pretending to be. She should be everyone’s hero.
  
• Cheri, my former neighbor, will someday be our real estate agent if we ever get the urge to actually move. Cheri keeps me laughing the whole time we’re together, and her family is loads of fun. Jack peed on her mom once. We were way bummed when Cheri and her family moved out of our neighborhood (it’s amazing how far away “the other side of the trees” seems now!), even though I adore the people that bought their house. We occasionally run into them at the grocery store and pass them on 142nd, but more frequent visits would be a treat. Not just cuz they have a pool, neither.
  
• Deanna is another long-time friend. I love her family (see “Debi,” below) and some of my favorite high school memories took place at her house. Deanna and I shared that teen angst that worried our parents so much. She introduced me to the alternative music of the 80s (Depeche Mode, Erasure, The Cure, Scritti Politti, etc.) and surprisingly, we both turned out pretty normal. Although we don’t have nearly as much contact as we did before we both became moms, we still have a good time when we get together, and life feels “right” again. Her husband is hilarious.
  
• Debi and I have been friends since around 1984, when I started hanging out at her house with her older sister. I love her family (see “Deanna,” above) and some of my favorite high school memories took place at her house. Debi and I share a lot of the same interests, like crafty things, travel, our kids, shopping, home décor, that sort of stuff. Vic accuses me of trying to keep up with the Nelsons, because every time I see Debi I come home wanting something new. OK, I got my DVD player after seeing hers, and I got the urge for a new house after she got one. I remember I also went a little nutso over a certain kind of lipstick after she told me about it. But the great thing is that it’s not about “keeping up.” We’re not competitive with each other and I feel like we bring out good things in each other. Our visits together are always fun, no matter where they take place.
  
• Ed is a former coworker/boss/client, and now a friend I don’t see nearly enough. I always say that Ed is my second favorite guy on the planet. He’s my last remaining contact with the world I knew before becoming a mushy-brained parent, and nowadays when we get together I feel a little less out of touch with that part of life. Ed has excellent taste in books and movies, and is the person I have to thank for encouraging me to listen to NPR more often. He came to the hospital when both our kids were born, and that still means so much to me. He has a friend that hates when people describe him as “nice,” so I hesitate to use that word to describe him. How ‘bout “fabulous”? Yep, that’s just right.
  
• Janet is currently a coworker/client. I think one of the things that makes Janet most special to me is that we didn’t really hit it off the first time we met. I didn’t dislike her, I just didn’t connect with her in the same way I did with one of the other people in her office. And when that person left and I had no choice but to work with Janet, I finally came to truly appreciate her. Not only do I look forward to spending time working with her now, I consider her a friend. She’s got a gentle and loving heart and is probably one of the nicest people I know.
  
• Kathy, in case you’ve missed nearly every post where I mention her, is my seester. Besides growing up in the same family, we have a lot of the same interests and best of all, a similar sense of humor. That stuff bonds us in a way I’m not bonded to anyone else. When our dad died we dealt (and are still dealing with) the loss together and I’ve never been so glad to have a sister. We’ve often said we’re so glad it’s just the two of us; if there were more we’d probably gang up on each other and be a lot more competitive. Kathy has a beautiful smile and great laugh. She makes people laugh. She makes me laugh. If there were a #1 spot on this list, she’d be there.
  
• Lori is, first and foremost, my seester’s BFF. Twenty-plus years ago, Lori intimidated me because she was so quick, smart, funny, and my big sister’s friend. She’s still all those things, but she doesn’t scare me anymore. Now we have more in common; our kids are close in age, we live near each other (though usually only see each other in Colorado!), we enjoy a lot of the same columnists, and we share a mutual love of the Amazing Kath™. Plus, Lori checks in here at manullang.com on a semi-regular basis and I loooooves me some folk who do that!
  
• Michelle has cut my hair for 16 years now. I have faithfully followed her to several different salons over the years. You know how when you find the perfect doctor or dentist or therapist or manicurist or hair stylist, you can’t imagine giving them up? That’s Michelle, but-cept she isn’t a doctor or dentist or therapist (technically!) or manicurist. She’ll have to go into the witness relocation program to get rid of me. She’s also special because when I look at our wedding pictures I am still thankful she did my hair and makeup that day because I. Was. Stunning.
  
  
• Mom. She’s amazing. There’s no other way to say it. I love her more than life.
  
• Neighbors. The ones I spend the most time chatting with are David & Cristina and Darby & Dawn. They are incredibly fun. Some other good ones are Kristen, Trudy and Tina. I think I don’t ever want to move because of these wonderful people I’ve had the good fortune to get acquainted with. Our kids play great together and I’m glad they’ll always have good memories of their summers with their friends. Victor and I often talk about how lucky we are to have such great neighbors.
  
• The Paulsens (Kristine, Michael, Jennifer, Jonathan) are our former neighbors. They moved to Molalla last year, and we miss them terribly. Although we had met them before Kristine started home daycare, we didn’t get to know them well until Katie and Jack started spending time there. Kristine is a fabulous mom and gives me tons of good advice about dealing with some of my parenting frustrations. Jonathan was Katie’s best bud for a few years, and I’m still hoping they’ll get married someday because I would LOVE to have people like Michael and Kristine for in-laws! Attempts to get our families together over the last year have failed miserably, but we still think of and talk about them very often. Kristine told me she checks in here at manullang.com occasionally, so I hope if she reads this she is reminded of just how special her family still is to us. We really need to get together this summer!
  
• Sally is one of my sisters-in-law, and a friend for nearly 30 years. Some of my most fun kid memories involve Sally and her brothers Monte and Curtis. I love Sally’s sense of humor. And now I feel fortunate that we married brothers, because it ensures Sally will be making me laugh for years to come.
  
• Sheila is a former coworker. She’s a mom now, and I have loved hearing about Aiden’s first year. He’s an adorable little guy, and lucky to have such awesome parents. Sheila’s a crack-up and was a lot of fun to work with. When Jack stops hating “babies” (any kid younger than him) I hope we can get together so I can see Aiden in action for myself.
  
  
• Sherrice has been my friend since 1988 or so. We don’t talk nearly as often as we used to, but when we get together it feels like no time has passed. Sherrice was my maid of honor and I still consider her one of my favorite people in the world. Her family is great fun.
  
• Sonya is Vic’s sister. I think she’s the only person I’ve ever known that has made me wonder if she has any faults at all. And the more I get to know her, the more I continue to wonder it! Sonya is truly kind, and people that know her often tell me how lucky I am to be related to her (like I need to be reminded). I admire her quiet way, people skills, honesty and parenting style. I once asked Darlene if Sonya ever raises her voice at her children. I was assured that she does, though I won’t believe it until I hear it for myself.

Yikes. Sonya was a bad person to end this with, as now we all feel flawed in comparison. Oh well.

I feel incredibly lucky to have these people in my life. I’m not just appreciative of what they contribute to my life, I’m also thankful for the way they make me feel about myself—I mean, I must be an okay person if these lovely folk can tolerate me.