These days, I don't get too jazzed up about celebrations of any kind. New Years Eve, well it just feels like any other day. Brian is working, my dad came over and watched a movie, and Kitty is now sitting on the arm of the couch, looking at me while I type. It may sound tame, but I like it this way. Quiet. Not terribly eventful.
There is one New Years that pops into my head now and again. When I think about it, I can't help but smile. Senior year, a bunch of us softball players headed out to California to stay with a teammate and see several others. All told, about half our team was there, which was pretty dang cool.
We got to go to the beach, explore this decidedly non-east coast world, and we got to laugh and be silly and have fun. We got to go see the Price is Right, when Bob Barker was still the host. It was oddly tiny in that studio, but seriously cool nonetheless. We went to visit another teammate after making the mistake of going to Carl's Junior...we ate so much we could barely move. When we got to her house, I collapsed on the ground and fell asleep on the floor. Of course, my friends were ever so understanding...they kept throwing the dog's ball over me so it would walk on me and run on me and leap over me repeatedly. Luckily, I can fall asleep in almost any circumstance....and I got Julie back years later in Indiana, when I riled up Mendy's devil dog and kept causing him to run over her on the bed...and then he vomited on her. I had to leave the room I was laughing so hard.
There is one New Years that pops into my head now and again. When I think about it, I can't help but smile. Senior year, a bunch of us softball players headed out to California to stay with a teammate and see several others. All told, about half our team was there, which was pretty dang cool.
We got to go to the beach, explore this decidedly non-east coast world, and we got to laugh and be silly and have fun. We got to go see the Price is Right, when Bob Barker was still the host. It was oddly tiny in that studio, but seriously cool nonetheless. We went to visit another teammate after making the mistake of going to Carl's Junior...we ate so much we could barely move. When we got to her house, I collapsed on the ground and fell asleep on the floor. Of course, my friends were ever so understanding...they kept throwing the dog's ball over me so it would walk on me and run on me and leap over me repeatedly. Luckily, I can fall asleep in almost any circumstance....and I got Julie back years later in Indiana, when I riled up Mendy's devil dog and kept causing him to run over her on the bed...and then he vomited on her. I had to leave the room I was laughing so hard.
Anyway...we had little epic adventures, how could we not when so many of us were in the same place under no constraints? At one point, we decided it would be a good idea to set up two skateboards side by side, sit facing each other with our legs connected and ride down the small, but steep hill at the lip of the driveway at our Lauren's house. Flo and I sat down and arranged ourselves. Taryn stood in front of us, ready to push us up the hill. About halfway up, Taryn realized she didn't know where she would go once she released us, and I imagine our combined weight was becoming bothersome. At that point, we started rolling forward, Taryn still in front of us, hands on our shoulders. She did the most incredible backwards striders down the hill, furiously kicking her legs up to avoid being crushed by the impending skateboards with full grown women on top. She managed to kick herself out of the way...and then Flo and I immediately went zooming off course (because we had no way of steering, which we hadn't previously considered...) and smashed through a small sprinkler pole on the patch of planted area along the drive.
In addition to breaking Lauren's sprinkler pole, we also destroyed her family's septic system, and Taryn managed to suck up her phone charger in an expensive vacuum. That moment, the one where the phone charger cord was sucked up in the vacuum, when we were trying to make up for all the other bad things we did to that house by cleaning...that is a moment that can make me laugh out loud in public. I was in the other room and could hear the vacuum humming along. Suddenly the sound of the cord being sucked up rippled through the house. You know the sound - that horrible grating, piercing, scratching sound that continues to suck up whatever is stuck until you finally regain the wherewithal to turn off the vacuum. As the noise continued to spiral out of control, I heard Taryn shouting for help, which only made the situation more humorous. Sometimes, just hearing something is more funny that seeing it, because the sound is so distinct that you know exactly what is taking place. I have the same reaction when I hear tires peeling out in snow. It just gets me.
In addition to breaking Lauren's sprinkler pole, we also destroyed her family's septic system, and Taryn managed to suck up her phone charger in an expensive vacuum. That moment, the one where the phone charger cord was sucked up in the vacuum, when we were trying to make up for all the other bad things we did to that house by cleaning...that is a moment that can make me laugh out loud in public. I was in the other room and could hear the vacuum humming along. Suddenly the sound of the cord being sucked up rippled through the house. You know the sound - that horrible grating, piercing, scratching sound that continues to suck up whatever is stuck until you finally regain the wherewithal to turn off the vacuum. As the noise continued to spiral out of control, I heard Taryn shouting for help, which only made the situation more humorous. Sometimes, just hearing something is more funny that seeing it, because the sound is so distinct that you know exactly what is taking place. I have the same reaction when I hear tires peeling out in snow. It just gets me.
Anyway, on New Years Eve, we went down to the peer and found ourselves going from bar to bar, taking in the sights, meeting new people, talking about the year that had passed. So many of us were from the mid west and east coast, so the bar's outdoor patio with heater poles right off the beach blew our minds. We felt so sophisticated, so classy.
The best part about that night and that trip was spending it with my girls. We are a group of friends - a group that extends out into other groups and other teams - that truly love and support one another. We can always make each other laugh. We spur on each others' creativity, turning mundane observations into elaborate hypothetical stories. We feel happiness when someone in our group succeeds. To spend time with this group of women on New Years Eve was a special experience. Hell, spending years of my life with these women was something that has shaped me in so many significant ways. Every single day, I miss seeing them, hearing about the little details of their daily lives, laughing with them over silly things.
The best part about that night and that trip was spending it with my girls. We are a group of friends - a group that extends out into other groups and other teams - that truly love and support one another. We can always make each other laugh. We spur on each others' creativity, turning mundane observations into elaborate hypothetical stories. We feel happiness when someone in our group succeeds. To spend time with this group of women on New Years Eve was a special experience. Hell, spending years of my life with these women was something that has shaped me in so many significant ways. Every single day, I miss seeing them, hearing about the little details of their daily lives, laughing with them over silly things.
Towards the end of the trip, I learned of my mother's death. It was an excruciating experience, one that I have written about before and will write about again no doubt. This post is not the time or place for most of the details, but there are a few that seem particularly important. Without any question, Kate flew home with me. Julie texted me a simple "I love you." Lauren, always calm under pressure, drove us to the airport and served as the rock I needed her to be. Over the months that followed, all of my friends showed me graciousness and love, even when they didn't know what to say or do. When I look at pictures of this trip, when I think about our time in California, I always think about the death of my mom and my consequent launch into full fledged adulthood, but I also think about how blessed I am to have such an incredibly support system in my life. These women know me, and they love me for everything - hideous and wonderful - that I am. For that, I am thankful.
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