Stuck in Time??

I got a phone call last night which boggled my mind.

"Hey...our Homecoming is next Friday, and everyone's going! I was thinking of you and wishing you could go too, and see everybody!"

Heeeellloooo.....I did not go to your high school; I'm really only fond of one of your other HS friends; so why the hell would I even go?

I don't even keep up with my own HS homecomings! Am I the only one who feels this way?

Granted, she still lives in her HS area; I do not. The urge to return to my HS games ended quite a while back; however, when my HS Basketball team made it to the State Finals and my mother had an extra ticket, yeah I went! But that was different; I wasn't there to reconnect with any of my old crowd.

I love my friend dearly; we've been friends for 24 years. But while I've moved on with my life (married, kids, pubbed author), she's stuck in a time warp. She calls me when she can't believe the latest gossip about whatever celebrity; she wants to go to concerts and the latest movies; she calls me every fall to talk about the new lineup on TV. I could really care less at times, but as I'm one of the few friends she can vent about things, I patiently listen to her. Yes, sometimes I've expressed my impatience with her, but this is her life, and she's happy.

And more importantly, she misses me, since we used to get together for lunch every few months or so. But since I've moved 2 hours away, we've not seen eachother in 18 months. She's hoping I'll be able to go see her when I go to my parent's house in two weeks, and I'm going to try.

See there? I'm a good friend.

And speaking of good friends, remember the grouchy one over the summer? We finally connected the other day for breakfast, and everything was forgiven. She even asked about my book sales, without my hinting about it! Will she show up tonight at my signing? Highly unlikely. But at least she's able to laugh at herself again. And yes, she admitted she missed the way I cheer her up!

Maybe her life is finally beginning to stabilize once more?