Sundance Kid (Patty)

Ha ha! I like that outerwear conundrum! We have some outerwear issues as well, almost always starting with me forgetting to bring a jacket and then complaining about it being cold. (The New Orleans Arena/Legless Little Richard night does NOT count, because it was 40 degrees in there, and even though I had a leather jacket with me on a balmy night, the coat was no match for the wintry indoor conditions, but it was no fault of my own…)
That was a very sweet synopsis of your relationship, and it made me start thinking about friendships in general. I’m ridiculous with my kids these days, I have them on pedestals, I can’t help it. For example, Zeke lives in the house, but the Architecture Program is intense, he leaves at 7AM and doesn’t return until midnight. It’s weird, I can sense his presence, but actual sightings are rare. When he arrives at home, I can easily imagine saloon doors swinging, his physique backlit by the setting summer sun, casting a broad shadow down the hallway. I drop everything I’m doing, and have this “Zeke is home!” moment that gives him celebrity status that is completely unearned.
Technically, that is mothering and not friendship. Sometimes in friendships I am calm and composed and tolerant and so happy just to call the person my friend, I'm like a human Hallmark card. But then other times, I just snap and feel completely intolerant. Why do I risk ruining a hard-earned friendship with confrontation? I do not have the answer to that. Why do people with “high highs” have to have “low lows”? …you know my Indian friend with the thermal house temperatures? She is very charismatic, I don’t think we’ve ever been to a restaurant where she hasn’t met the people at the table next to us. In fact, she meets people everywhere, in airports, on the dance floor, at church… people crack one another’s skulls, clamoring to interact with her, she is great at generating fun, and that is a true and enviable gift. However, those types of personalities have a “B Side”. If you are alive, you have a group of annoying habits. It’s interesting how some relationships make the cut, and some do not. It’s nice when the things you like about someone totally cloud the things about them that bother you. I think women are lying when they say they’ve never had a fight with their husband. Someone I knew said that to me once, and then one night, she and her husband had a disagreement and didn’t say one word to each other for 3 hours which was awkward since there were only 4 people there.….that qualifies as a fight! But everyone has their own way of making a marriage or a friendship work, and that system was working well for them. It sounds like you’ve worked out some beautiful arrangements to “accentuate the positive”.
By the way, Portia dyed a portion of her hair blue. As far as rebellion goes, I’m OK with it. She has beautiful blonde hair, I really don’t know why you’d want it blue-er, but then again, I’m not 16.
It’s just about time for me to leave for Ireland, I don’t know…should I bring a raincoat??!!

Patty