Monday, July 12, 2010

I Get By With A Little Help From My Friends

I have a confession to make - I accomplished very, very little this weekend.  Of course I went into Friday with grand ideas of everything that would get done over the following two days.  But when evening rolled around and found the Chef and I strolling a beachy area in LA, all those grand ideas suddenly didn't seem so important anymore.  Instead my focus turned to a Saturday engagement party we were attending for two of my dearest friends.

It's interesting, you know, what these types of events can stir up in a person.  Or at least what they stir up in me.


The groom is one of my closest friends; someone I have known for over 10 years.  He's seen me at my highest highs and the lowest of lows.  Several of his closest friends are people I know or am at least acquainted with, so I looked forward to seeing everyone and celebrating my friend and his soon-to-be bride's upcoming day.  When we walked in it was mid-way through the event and getting down to the most familiar faces.  Before you knew it several of us were sitting in a circle reminiscing.  Ten years is a long time to know people - and it has gone by quickly.  As you get older friendships can be fleeting, so to have people in your life that you have invested in and who have invested in you - well, to me, that is a real gift.  As I looked around the room I realized I had known some of these people when they were getting their drivers licenses!  Now some of them had babies - and some more than one.

I listened to the "remember when's" of the grooms' parents being out of town and him becoming deathly ill, so ill that one of his best friends had to take the day off work and sit with him in the emergency room where they poked and prodded to get an IV in unsuccessfully - his friend saying it was so painful he actually held our friends' hand.  And later stocked up on groceries (okay Gatorade for him) while other friends still kept on visiting the house and hanging out while he was sick in bed!!  Ahhhh youth.

We shared stories of the groom and I shopping up a storm - and of crazy ladies following me from store to store buying what I bought, of an even crazier time when I was holding up an item on a hanger when a cuckoo store employee took the garment right off the hanger as we were discussing it - giving it to another customer as we stood there in shock!!  Then there was the time we were returning from the Hotel Cafe when the homeless guy jetted out into the street with his cart - right in front of my friend's car!!  What a crazy night that was.  Or when I was so sick with Celiac Disease but mistakenly being treated for MS, and my friend recalled me going on and on convinced I was just going to drop dead (while the Chef shook his head and said that sounded like something I would do).

I couldn't help but quietly remember how much my friend had, over the years, expressed his hope of finding just the right person for him.  My mind flooded with the first time I met his fiancee.  Their compatibility was just uncanny in the best way possible.  I liked her right away and just knew this was it for him!  Yay!  And now we were all sitting together with the two of them just weeks from their special day. 


This aging thing is really a trip.  If I stop and let myself think about it, it freaks me out.  How about you?

I spent approximately 12 glorious hours today watching a non-stop marathon of The Hills.  At one point Heidi Montag said to Kristin Cavallari, 'I feel like I'm not getting any older, but time just keeps on passing by.'  In hindsight I think this may be the last coherent thing Heidi Montag said.  And no she was not holding a crystal when she said it (sorry I couldn't resist). 

When Heidi made that comment it really resonated with me and was like a jolt to the system.  I've been pondering it since because it is exactly how I feel.

And I wish the last part of the green note above said And Everything is Being Rebuilt - because I guess this is what happens as you continue growing up.  Things change, people move in and out of your life, you age - but time keeps moving and the older you get the faster it moves.

I'm so happy for my friend because he and his bride-to-be are going to have a fantastic wedding and life together!!  And we'll all continue a little rebuilding as the clock keeps ticking onward.  It's always great to make new friends, but there's something very special about the old ones who know your secrets, your triumphs and trials.  They really become like family.

32 comments:

ilovemyhouse said...

Beautiful post, and so many true words. I cherish my "old" friends. XX

Lou said...

Hi Carrie - I think we are similar ages so this post resonates with me. I am stunned at how fast life is passing by and how in amongst that day to day I am ageing - along with all of my friends. It seems so poignant to me that the memories I have are of time that are now 20 years in the past! BIZARRE! And as you say, there is something about old friends - about shared histories that is very special. Lou x

fashion clocked said...

Such sweet words- dont worry about life as a ticking clock- sometimes I just don't know where time goes, and it's scary to think! Reminiscing with friends is great and the celiac story and Me- terrible. I suffer with ME too ( I think it is quite often linked with food allergies)
All the people that come and go, and highs and lows we experience seriously shape us as people, and make us so much more understanding of others!
visit me soon!
fashion clocked
kisses katie.xx

Lilacandgrey said...

I pretty much had the same experience at my best friends wedding this weekend...Isn't it funny (and weird) running into people you grew up with, you start to remember all the crazy stories of youth :)
<3

Jess said...

I feel the same way about age. Now that I'm married and bought a house, I suddenly feel old!! Ughh

Kim@Chattafabulous said...

This is a great post. I recently reconnected with some old friends and it's like all the years between us never happened, but I can see them when I look in the mirror...

Nikki said...

Such a sweet post. It sounds like you have amazing friends.



xx
Nikki

D e g a i n e said...

Great post, seriously amazing friends!

D E G A I N E

http://www.fashiondegaine.com

erica said...

Absolutely loving this post!

xo

BrooklynBlonde said...

Amazing post and so beautifully said! I feel the same exact way. "Wait, weren't we just 16 years old?" I say to my friends. It's scary and so true! But having true friendships is one of the greatest gifts on earth and we should never take that (or them) for granted.

D&D said...

this made me feel nostalgic. i miss my college friends - they are like family. xoxo

Nicole said...

Ok, tear fear over here!! I am so blessed by Danny and so lucky to inherit his friends!! We are so thrilled you and Chris were able to come celebrate and reminisce with us!! Here's to the next 10 years and memories to come! We love you :)

J. said...

Awesome post - I consider my best friend my sister. We even decided that we would be in eachothers series finale of Lost like when they reunite with the most important people in their life before moving on! haha (Very weird I know lol).

http://jammer10am.blogspot.com/

Valerie said...

This is so true, Carrie. I sometimes feel that way too. Like I'm still 22 and everyone else is getting older. Haha. But I also feel like the older I get, the more important my long term friendships become. Congratulations to your friend and best wishes to his bride to be. Sounds like you had a nice, relaxing weekend.

xo
Valerie

Gorgeous Glam said...

Time passes by faster more than anything! but I really feel so blessed to get older! I know it sounds crazy but I feel so much happier than when I was younger, I guess more myself. More free. More beautiful, though I see little changes here and there, it doesn't scare me! I'm ready to take aging by force and look fierce! And the friendships just get better. How exciting for your good friend! Love is the greatest thing! hugs

Poppies and Sunshine said...

I enjoyed your post today! A lot of thought provoking things here! The whole aging thing freaks me out too. I guess it is all okay when we are surrounded by the people we love though!

k said...

this was such a great post lady! it definitely resonates with me...i'm always thinking about new friends and old....etc. oh life. and i love the hills. well, loved. pre KC - which i haven't eeven seen just heard about...anyway, ok bye!

Anna Walker said...

Hi Carrie, I know what you mean, I have known some of my friends since I was 2 and it's crazy how much life has changed and evolved since then. It's a good kind of crazy.

And That is the best and only thing I have ever heard Heidi quoted on, and I am glad she said it. It makes sense and actually is a really good quote :)

BusyB said...

so glad to hear you had a great weekend (sometimes the ones where you do nothing are the best!!) I do have to say really lol the hills marathon hahahaha love it!!!!

stylenuggets said...

Lovely post. Hard to imagine Heidi saying something sensible like that. I've been watching the last few seasons of 'The Hills' and Speidi are two nuts that get nuttier all the time!!

Silver Strands said...

Great post Carrie ... thanks for sharing !

oxox
Denalee

Closet Fashionista said...

Very good post! Gives you a lot of things to think about...ahh aging, I don't like it ;)

Yea, if I got rid of my Potter stuff I think I would be scarred for life, haha...but I wouldn't ever sell the good stuff anyway...and the small stuff isn't worth much, so XD
http://aclosetfashionista.blogspot.com/

She Wore It Well said...

It's funny like that isn't it. You can't wait to get older, and then you do, but you aren't actually getting older! I am almost 27, still feeling 19. My mother cannot stand the fact that I haven't grown up.

Abby said...

This post is really beautiful. Excellent reminder of how things aren't just falling apart, but being rebuilt all the time... in the best of ways.

Here's to many years of happiness.

Jesa said...

Beautiful words, you are SUCH a great writer-You can feel the joy in your words.love coming here :)

cheers beautiful!
-Jesa

erica said...

yay for sun, and I am totally jealous that you found even more lovely things. Seriously dying over here without the cuteness lol!

xo

corey said...

This was fabulous.... Need I say more?

Irene's Beautyblog said...

This post was heartwarming! You are amazing! :)

Josie said...

My love, this is so true and so beautiful. There is simply no way that I could express how amazing this is as beautifully and eloquently as you wrote this post. So I'll just say that longtime friendships are the best, no?
xo Josie
http://winksmilestyle.blogspot.com

Caitlin @ Candyfloss & Persie said...

awesome! Sounds like you had a special, special weekend and most importantly, the value of it didn't pass you by. I love that you spent time with a couple who seem to be made for each other. That's wonderful. That Heidi quote is good though I don't know that she really lived it... seeing how she had 10 surgeries in one day. :)

this free bird said...

Caitlin - even better yet, ol' Heidi made that comment AFTER the surgeries. Yowsers!

heather said...

Old friends are truly the best. Or good friends. We moved around a lot, so I can't say I'm really in touch with my oldest friends in any real way. But some of my best high school and college friends... well, now I suppose those friendships are going on 15+ years. Wowza! Today I had one of those moments in the mirror where I thought my age was catching up to me, and I thought, hmmm, hope I can do this gracefully! :)

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