Bad Influences

We all have them. We all enjoy them. You know you do, so don’t try to say you don’t! Everyone of us has a friend that’s a bad influence. The one that says another slice of cake won’t hurt, or that you need that new dress, or that those shoes are absolutely fabulous and you must get them.

I have one of those friends, too. His name is Mitchell, and he is dangerous. Oh, we’ve never met, and he would die before going dress shopping with me. But when it comes to art and the kitchen, he is mandragora. He is the reason several bloggers came up with a new name for shopping: going a-yorling, after his former blogging name. A couple of days ago he posted some lovely kitchen canisters that he purchased as a housewarming gift for his mom. Not only lovely, but handmade here in the USA. You can guess what happened next:

Yep, I got the complete canister set from Crosby & Taylor. In my defense it was a fabulous deal, and considering I had been using two basket canisters for the longest time, I felt I was due for an upgrade. Right?? All I know is that now I need the matching garlic pot and soap dispenser. And when I say “need”, I mean WANT LIKE BURNING!!

If Mitchell ever has a garage sale, I’m sunk 😉

Pinky Promise

I have a couple of confessions to make.

I skipped a day in the challenge. The letter I skipped was to someone who was going through the worst of times. Usually I am the last to know about any drama. Most of the time I find out about it weeks after the fact. Sometimes even years!!! So, I decided to skip it due to lack of knowledge 🙂

The second confession is the letter for today. I can’t recall ever having made a pinky promise to anyone. And if I have, I must have kept it to myself so well that I will never break it.

So, if anyone remembers the pinky promise, I hope you see how trustworthy I am!!!

A Thanks for My Favorite Memory

I have a gift, and a curse. I have a great memory. It has saved me a few times, and gotten me in trouble a few times. It was a point of contention with Hubby for a long time, and a blessing to my godmother while researching our roots. Consequently, I have a lot of great and not-so-great memories. And by “a lot” I mean a lot. I can’t pick just one, so I will do my Top Ten:

10) Peeking over the caldera of Kilauea at Hawaii Volcanoes National Park.

9) Having Hubby show me killdeer nesting near the apartment where we first lived.

8 ) La Piedra Escrita (The Written Stone) in my hometown in PR. Petroglyphs from long ago, including a “cowboy”!

7) Any time my sisters and I got together during holidays. Too many to mention, but one in particular stands out. We all gathered in the Jack-and-Jill bath to compare derrieres. Y’all have to admit, that’s pretty funny!

6) Watching my dad and uncles sing danzas and trios while getting ripped during the holidays. Actually, that happens whenever they get together. One time they drove to a barra a few miles away and decided to serenade the patrons. Total epicness!

5) Driving through East Texas on the way to grandmother’s house (insert song here) and having Hubby tease the kids about llamas.

4) The first time Hubby ever kissed me.

3) My first concert: “Weird Al” Yankovic, and I had the best seat in the house.

2) The births of my children. Each was different, each was special, and each I remember with love.

1) The day of my wedding. Words are such poor substitutes for the joy I relive each time I recall that day.

So there you have it. Some of my favorite memories. I hope y’all have some to share, as well 🙂

Letter to Someone From My Childhood

I was never close to any childhood friends. I had a best friend in elementary growing up in Puerto Rico, but he ended up dating my cousin and breaking her heart with another childhood friend, whose dad was good friends with my dad, and and whose brother ended up marrying yet another cousin. Am I ever glad I was gone when all that stuff went down. Twenty-five years later, the drama is still going on. As for childhood friends here, I am still in touch with a few. Some have passed away, and others don’t have an internet life. But there is one friend that has been with me since I first saw him at the age of 8:

Dear Snoopy,

I love you, and don’t ever change 😉

Love,

Me

 

Letter to Someone From Whom I Drifted

I tried several times to write this letter, but honestly, I can’t. There have been a lot of people that have drifted from me, and in return, I have drifted away from a lot of people. It’s normal and it happens. A few times I have tried to touch base again with people I haven’t seen in years, only to find that there is not much in common between us, or that what we did have in common was shunned in favor of moving on. A few times I have been rebuffed in my attempts to capture back a friendship. In those cases, I am happy to have drifted. In few cases, not so much.

It may be selfish and rude, but drifting away has helped me to grow in different ways. It’s not always a bad thing, I guess 🙂

A Letter Asking Forgiveness

A few months ago, a blog I used to frequent had a dust-up over the banning of a frequent commenter. Stuff like that happens, of course, but what really set some people off, myself included, was the banning of one individual by another, without benefit of a vote or even a consensus, in a blog that had established no rules for conduct. Consequently some things were said by certain parties. I may not have said them first, but I agreed, and chose a side. This letter is to those who, like myself, were caught in the crossfire.

Dear people,

I’m sorry for any conflict I may have caused, either directly or indirectly. I’m sorry you felt the need to tip-toe around the conflict. I am not one who deliberately sets out to poke with a cattle prod, but I couldn’t in good conscience keep quiet about my opinions. If I feel something was handled in the wrong way, I will say it. If I feel some are acting childishly and circling wagons, I will say that, too. But if you felt that I passed judgment on you for whatever reason, then I am truly sorry, for that was never my intent. Being ignored and defriended has taught me who has thin skin, and who can take the blows.

It has also taught me the value of true friends.

Sincerely,

Me

Letter to a Cyberfriend

I have been fortunate to make what some bloggers and commenters refer to as “fake internet friends”. With very few exceptions, they have fostered strong friendships and have become like family. In fact, the recent loss of my FIF PattyAnn has left me feeling like I lost a close relative. I am lucky indeed to have such great friends, and though I have so many that I can write about, I can only pick one, so I will pick the first 🙂

Dear Max,

What can I say?? You and I share the same brain. That is enough to scare our mutual internet acquaintances, I’m sure. On second thought, it should also scare our common “real life” friends. You have helped me through hard times, and are always able to make me laugh when I feel down. You show a loyalty that is without equal, and a moral compass that is unbreakable. You share your family with mine like we were siblings, and turn to me for advice when you are at your wit’s end. You work so hard to teach your son, and you also work hard to make sure he walks the right path as he grows into a young man. And when I feel sorry for myself, you are quick to kick my behind and tell me to STFU and appreciate what I have. You have never failed to do that. In fact, you may have set a world record for fastest kick…. Anyway, I am very glad we are friends, and so grateful to have you in my life. And for that, I thank you!!

Your twinkie,

Aggie

Letter to an Old Flame

This letter will be a departure from the light-heartedness of my previous letters. I dated two guys in high school. One treated me like a queen. This letter is for the other one.

A,

You were my first romance. We were friends, and stayed friends throughout our time dating. Things change, and we went our separate ways, yet remained good friends. Then came our senior year in high school, and you wanted to rekindle our relationship. And I thought to myself it would be fine, because we were still friends. And like a fool, I believed you when you told me that helping you in English was just a way for us to spend time together.

I was blind to the signs. You couldn’t go out at night, because your grades needed to improve, so you couldn’t go out on dates with me, but you could hang out with your friends in football and band. You couldn’t see me on the weekends, but you could go to practice and then out for a bite to eat with friends. You couldn’t sit with me in the classes we had together, but you could sit with your football buddies, the same ones who thought I was a geek and a prude.

And then came the coup de grace: Valentine’s Day, and the Sweetheart Dance. I went to three different stores to find the perfect card for you, and when I gave it to you, you said thanks, and stuck it in a history book. I had waited all week for you to call me for a time to pick me up for the dance. And the day of the dance as I asked you to walk me to my locker, I asked jokingly if you had a date. And you said you did. In a haze, I walked, and managed to ask who she was. And when you told me her name, all the clues finally fell into place. Meekly, I wished that you would have a good time, and you left me standing there. My shock cushioned me for all of five minutes, until you sent a mutual friend to inform me, as kindly as he could, that you were breaking up with me.

You were despicable for using a mutual friend like that. You were a coward for not having the guts to tell me you were done with me because I wouldn’t sleep with you. You were a liar, because you couldn’t just ask me to help you with your class, thinking you had to pretend to “like” me again to get ahead. But worst of all, you were weak, because you believed your football friends over me, a friend that had stuck with you since 6th grade, and someone who had helped you through really bad times.

You did me a great favor. I no longer take things at face value. I have a wonderful life, and I’m very happy, and I sincerely hope you are, too. I hope you learned the value of a friend, since your selfishness cost you not just my friendship, but our mutual friend’s as well.

Sincerely,

Me

On Loss

This morning I found out that a friend of mine had passed away. She fought long and hard, her spirit unbroken and her faith unshaken. She lost her battle, and I found myself bereft and grieving for a wonderful woman I had never met.

She was the kindest person I’ve never met. Her laughter and humor could make anyone forget their troubles. She healed us when our pettiness overwhelmed us. She could find happiness each and every day, even when Life was throwing curveballs.

She taught me to find laughter everyday, even when I felt like loneliness was about to crush me. She helped me be a better person, and for that I am very grateful. And yes, I recall your wishes. I’m wearing my PJs and slippers, and smiling through my tears, because I know you are looking at them and laughing at the stuffed llama sitting right next to me.

We will miss you terribly, PattyAnn. But I take comfort in the fact that God is holding you in His loving arms right now, and that the love you gave us will only keep growing.

We love you, PattyAnn, and that will be forever.

A Letter to My Best Friend

My friend and blogger Mel has thrown a rather hard gauntlet. The challenge   is to write a letter each day for thirty days to one specific person in your life, current or in your past. Some of the letters I will not be able to write, and some will be written to the same person, but at least it will provide plenty of laughs let y’all get to know me a bit. So, here is Day One, a letter to my best friend:

Dearest,

Our relationship has weathered many storms in the quarter century we’ve been together. Laughter, tears, sickness, health, life and death have intertwined like a growing vine through our hearts, making us one. I know sometimes you are surprised at the things you find out about me, like the blogging thing, for instance, but even vines need a little room to grow. And though I grow, I shall also grow with you, until I’m old and gray….wait a minute…

Anyway, I never say it enough, but you are my bestest best friend, and I love you, and I can’t imagine living without you. You accept me, warts and all, just as I accept you. And I think that makes us whole.

Your wife 🙂