The friend hunt

As you all have realized from previous posts, moving back to Great Falls has been a roller coaster transition. When we found out we would be moving, one of the things I was most distressed over was finding friends. I'm the type of person who needs a small group (6-10) of friends. You know, the group of gals you can call at the last minute and say, "Hey, do you want to come play games?" or "I need to go on a walk, want to join me?". It took me a couple of years in Meridian to find an amazing group of friends. For the 1st two years there, I wandered around like a lost sheep, hoping I could entice someone to induct me into their friend circle.


You see, finding friends in your 30's is more difficult than finding friends in your 20's and I'm beginning to think it gets more difficult as your age. By the 30's, women have already found their circle of friends though their children, job, church group, hubbies, etc. It's hard to break into those circles. On top of that, I'll admit, I'm fairly picky. I like having lots of friendly acquaintances, but real girlfriends usually have to meet some criteria. Here are a few girlfriend attributes I try to follow and my deep, down, forever girlfriends follow as well:

• Don't have to talk to each other every minute of every day, but are ready to step it up when one of the gals is in need
• Can go for a week or 2 (or months/years for long distance girlfriends) and you pick up right where you left off
• Punctual. I feel a little jilted when a friend feels their time is more important than mine. It's demeaning.
  
• They are there if they say they are coming. It really bothers me when someone says they are coming and then they just don't show. Now, there are emergency exceptions, but those should be rare.
  
• Realizes you are faulty, and doesn't care.
• Avoids drama (honestly, I swear there are people who thrive on it)
• Doesn't take themselves too seriously
  

So, I'm on the hunt again. It's just as difficult as it was in Meridian. I'd love to have a group to play volleyball/walleyball with monthly. How about the group that gets together to celebrate our birthdays? I miss that for sure. I'm not giving up. Girlfriends are worth it. They keep me sane. Do you think putting out a want ad would sound too desperate? Probably.

Socks, how I love thee.

Every Christmas season for the past 5 years or so, I've hosted a fun & crazy sock exchange. I long for socks the way most women collect shoes. This year was a bit more of a challenge due to the moving and the communal living and the new life and all, so I wasn't sure what to do. My sister was hosting book club for December, including a sock exchange and, much to my delight, an ugly sweater contest. Contest? Did someone mention contest? I'm in!

Coop & I went to Goodwill to find a couple sweaters which would meet my ugly standards. I profusely apologize in advance if you were once the proud owner of either sweater, but really you owe yourself a reward for letting go. Luckily, prior to the sweater hunt, I told Coop not to say anything about the true intent of our trip as to avoid offense. When I went to checkout, the cashier gushed over the fuchsia sweater, asking me where I found it in the store. Cooper kept a straight face the entire time. The cowboy sweater was my favorite. I love the short, square form with just the right indentation at each side. I didn't win, but I was one of the kind-of-hosts, so I asked for no votes. The opportunity to wear my find was reward in and of itself.

Socks are another story. I know socks and I was out for toesies that night. You're jealous...I know, but I was meant for these socks. I did end up hosting a small sock party just a couple days before Christmas. It was a small group but we enjoyed a relaxing evening of food, conversation, and threads for our tootsies. Unfortunately, I forgot my camera.

Hi, ho silver...Away!