Seeking Camelot: Friends

Tough Decisions

Thu, 07 Feb 2008 17:49:20 GMT

Some friends of ours have a very hard decision to make soon.

Our very good friends, Mk and Db, who I've mentioned in this blog off and on took their 14 year old Boxer, Gabbie, to the vet 2 days ago. She's had problems with her right shoulder and it had gotten to the point that she wouldn't put any weight at all on that leg. Well, when Db was giving her a bath over the weekend, she noticed 2 lumps on her mammaries. The vet appointment was already made, so she decided to ask him about that when they got there.

The vet gave her a complete checkup. He found that her lymph nodes were all swollen and that she was even favoring her left rear leg too because of it. Db told him that she also hasn't been eating and drinks very little.

Then he gave Db the prognosis....which wasn't good.

He didn't actually use the "C" word, but he alluded to it and said that it was up to Mk and Db what to do next, but that he would do whatever he could possibly do to make Gabbie more comfortable.

Db called me that evening and told me what was going on. She was trying to use as much wisdom as she could manage without letting her emotions get in the way of the final decision. No one wants to see their pet suffer solely because you can't let go. You know?

It's even tough for us to think about them losing Gabbie. We've all been friends for about 12 years...so Gabbie was still basically a puppy when we started spending time together. She's just like part of their family. She was the official door greeter at their house! lol We always had to say hello to Gabbie before she'd let us in. lol

Anyway, I think they're seriously considering ending her suffering. She's been going downhill for the last year...more and more quickly as each week passes.

Please pray for them to have wisdom and courage to make a really TOUGH decision.

Guinevere

It's Here!

Tue, 25 Dec 2007 14:49:00 GMT

Merry Christmas!

I hope this morning finds everyone well and blessed! My wish for all of you today and through this holiday time is peace, joy, and love.

And let's all remember the Reason we celebrate this time of year!

God gave us the greatest gift of all, His Son, so that we could spend eternity with Him. All He asks in return is our heart.

Have a wonderful, precious Christmas, blog friends!

Guinevere

A Circle of Friends

Thu, 08 Feb 2007 17:46:41 GMT

This past Christmas, I got something I’ve been wanting for a long time…’Friends’ seasons on DVD! I didn’t get all of them, only seasons 1, 2, and 10. (Don’t ask why the jump…I don’t have a clue.) I then turned around and bought seasons 3 and 4 on eBay recently. I don’t know why I was in such a rush to get some of the other seasons…I never have time to sit down and watch them.

‘Friends’ is one of my all time favorite shows. I watched it when it premiered…for about the first 2 or 3 seasons. I’m not sure why I quit watching it at the time, but I did. I’ve always loved catching reruns, though!

In the evenings, by the time we get home, get through dinner, check email while the kids wash dishes, go over schoolwork, blah blah blah…I usually only end up with about 45 minutes of free time before I need to go to bed. That’s enough to watch 2 episodes…sometimes I fudge and watch 3…or 4. hehe

The other night, M and I were watching part of season 2. (He’s finished season 1 already…I haven’t…but whatever.) As I was watching, I realized why I like the show so much.

It reminds me so much of the group of friends that I was a part of when I was in my early 20s. In fact, as I was watching, I started looking for similarities between the characters on ‘Friends’ and the friends I had then.

We all worked together in the same restaurant…we girls were waitresses and hostesses and the guys were cooks. If you’ve ever spent any time in the food industry on a scale other than fast food, you know that that is an entirely different sub-culture altogether. Oh the drama! It’s a soap opera life and I’m not kidding. The stories I could tell… lol

One of my best friends was a lot like Monica…very organized and in control. She made stupid mistakes with men, but when one of the rest of us were taken in by some jerk, she was the first one to give us a shake and say, “What are you doing???” She was also very meticulous about her appearance…esp. her hair.

Believe it or not, I had a friend like Phoebe! lol She was an art major like me and we had the greatest time in class together. We worked together and that’s how we became friends, but then, when the new semester started, we realized we had 3 art classes together. It was a bonus. She was A LOT like Phoebe.

None of the guy friends I had were much like Chandler, Ross, or Joey individually…but they were more of a cross between 2 of them or all 3. One of them, though, if I had to pick one as being the most like one of the ‘Friends’ characters, was a lot like Joey. He wasn’t as “dizzy”, but he did the “How you doin’?” thing a lot and thought he was quite the ladies’ man. And he hit on every single one of us girls at some point in our friendship.

And, just the way ‘Friends’ went, so went our circle of friends. Literally. One of my best friends, D, married one of the guys in our group…whom I had dated earlier. One of the guys that I really liked (and who never seemed to be available when I was and vice versa – reminiscent of Ross and Rachel) dated one of the other girls in our group…even though he and I had a chemistry. At some point, I think we all dated one another at one point or other. lol And we all remained friends…

At least until we either got married or graduated from college.

It’s inevitable that at some point in your life, whether in elementary school, high school, college, or at work, you’ll be a part of a circle of friends that will impact your life. And you’ll remember them forever.

If I could relive any part of my life, it would be that 3 year period…because of the friends that I had then…and ONLY because of them.

Somewhere out there is a picture of all of us together. I wish I had gotten a copy when I had the chance. I’m not even sure anymore who has the original.

C’est la vie and cheers to…

Rich

Frances

Dawn

Cassie (Monica)

Barbie (Phoebe)

Karen

Sean (Joey)

Sherry

Guinevere

Past Revisited

Sun, 14 Jan 2007 03:55:50 GMT

Nothing to get super excited about on this one, but I had a great morning! Just had to post this...before I forget.

From 1993-2003, I worked at a small restaurant/lounge here in town. I waited tables and even bartended for a few months while they looked for a replacement. But the key reason for me staying there as long as I did had nothing to do with the job or the manager or the tips or even the customers. It had everything to do with my boss, the owner, B.

I had never met such a generous and caring person in my life until I started working there (well except for my maternal grandfather). The first time I ever met B I knew I was going to like him. First, I'll give you a mental picture:

He is about 6'4" and weighs about 260 lbs. He's now in his late 50's. When he smiles, he has rosy chipmunk cheeks and his eyes go all squinty. He's got the most open, sincere smile in the world! And he looks like a little boy trapped in a man's body. He just looks "fun". In the mid-90s sometime, B won the "Putting People First" award from one of the Omaha tv stations. They sent one of their anchors down to interview him. He deserved it!

When M and I bought our house in 1996, one person on the loan board at the bank said that if we got rid of our motorcycle debt, he would give the ok on the mortgage loan. Well, at the time, we didn't have any way of scraping up the $1250 to pay off M's bike, so we thought we were just going to miss out on the house. Until B got word of it.

He loaned us the $1250 to pay off the bike so the loan on the house could start moving again. We paid the bike off, then turned around and sold it for $2500 and paid him back.

There have been other times that he's helped people out who've worked for him. One night while I was bartending, he was sitting at the bar telling us about how he worked for a guy that helped him out when he really needed it. And that he never forgot it. He wanted to do the same for his employees. He had a few who never paid him back and took advantage of him, but most of those he helped always made sure they paid him back in full. Some even gave him more than they borrowed because of gratitude.

Anyway, this morning, M and I decided to go out for a very late breakfast (10:30) and we went to my old stomping grounds. When we were ready to leave, K (B's youngest daughter) was working and she came out from behind the counter to give me a hug. She got teary and said, "I miss you!" I told her I missed her too, then we talked about 'what's new'. She told me that her dad was in his office and that he wasn't busy if I wanted to say hi.

Cool!

First off, a little more history...about 3 years after I started working for B, one of the afternoon bartenders got fired for taking money from the register. Me and another waitress had to file written statements because this girl contested it and all that baloney. It was real fun. Not. Anyway, before that, a waitress could go to the bar register and cash in her own tips. After that, you had to take your tips up to the bartender and let them do it. That way, only one person was in the register during a shift. Makes sense. One afternoon, though, I went into the bar and B was the only one there. I started to hand him my tips to cash in and he looked at me and said, "If I can't trust you, I can't trust anybody!" He let me cash in my own tips from then on.

On my last day at work,...keep in mind I had worked there just shy of 10 years!...I went to the bar to cash in my tips and B was there. I was getting ready to clock out for the day too. I said, "Well, I guess this is it," and smiled. B didn't say a word, but just gave me a huge hug. He made himself scarce after that. I almost didn't leave. lol Almost.

Anyway, this morning, I walked around the bar over to B's office door and poked my head in. He looked up, smiled and got up. When he came out of his office, he gave me the biggest bear hug I've had in a long time! He actually started crying when he told me that he missed me! Wow!

(We live in such a small town that it seems really odd that I wouldn't see these people during my regular errands, but I don't. Besides, now that I'm working so far away, I'm out even less when I'm home.)

Anyway, we talked about all kinds of things. Then M tracked me down and we had to leave. When M was looking for me, I joked, "Oh shoot, he found me!" lol B laughed and said, "You might be in trouble!" lol

You know, re-reading this you could get the impression that there might've been more there than there actually was. To B, I was like another daughter or a niece...to me, he was like a favorite uncle. That's it. Just thought it might be smart to clear that up. lol

Anyway, what a great visit! What a great morning! :o)

Guinevere

The Kind of People We Hang With...

Mon, 31 Jul 2006 13:06:15 GMT

Last night, my youngest sister, my parents, and our best friends (Mk and Db) were over for dinner and birthday cake. After dinner, all of us sat around visiting and it eventually turned to story-telling.

When Mk and M get together, it’s just mile-a-minute laughs. They play off of one another so precisely that you would swear it was rehearsed! And Mk is notoriously getting himself into embarrassing situations…which Db gladly shares with us.

Mk drives a truck for Walgreen’s. He doesn’t do overnight deliveries, so he’s home every night and every weekend. Db told us one story about how, after a delivery, he had to use the men’s room very badly. He pulled into a McDonald’s and walked up to the main doors. He pushed and the door only opened about 6 inches. He kept pushing harder and harder, but couldn’t get it to open any further. He thought, “That’s weird.” (The whole time Db is telling this, Mk is laughing behind his hand and getting redder and redder.) So, he thought it must just be him, so he proceeded to squeeze through the 6 inches the door would open. As he was working on it, he noticed everyone in McDonald’s was looking at him and yelling something at him. He said it was kind of muffled because there was still another set of doors between him and them…but he was finally able to make out what they were saying:

“PULL!”

Another time, Mk was picking up some groceries and was really embarrassed about the fact that he was going to have to pay with a credit card. As the clerk was ringing them up, the bagger asked him, “Paper or plastic?” And Mk replied:

“I’m afraid it’s going to have to be plastic today,” as he waved the credit card.

One last one…Mk said that next time the bag boy/girl asks you if you want paper or plastic, say:

“Either one is fine, I’m Bi-sacks-ual.”

He’s as twisted as M…

Guinevere