Thank You, Maniac!

Hello, tender friends!

In 2008, I met this wonderful human named Megan. (I wish I had a picture of you to post here, Maniac!)

We were both doing a TEFL (teaching English as a foreign language) course in Barcelona, Spain. We had alliterative nicknames for each other as part of our course, and she became Maniac Meg. I became Spicy Stacey.

Sounds fun, right? Well, it was probably fun for Meg because she had a cute Spanish boyfriend. I, however, had recently been jilted by my (Spanish) boyfriend and didn’t know how to move forward.

She and I both showed up for TEFL class one morning only to discover that it had been canceled. Because I had recently been jilted by my boyfriend, I was basically a walking hemorrhoid of misery.

“Let’s go get coffee since we’re both here and class is canceled,” Megan suggested.

I didn’t feel like I had very much to offer anyone because of my said walking hemorrhoid state, but we went to the nearest cafe. I told her that I liked her sweater, which was a kelly green argyle sweater.

Kelly green was one of my favorite colors. I wore it whenever possible because it helped my hair look blonder. Meg’s hair was so naturally blonde I was convinced she just had a really good hairdresser, but it turns out that her golden locks are totally natural. Seriously. I also remember telling her that her hair looked like it had been highlighted one day, and I meant it in a totally complimentary way.

Why do I remember these details? Because my brain was latching on to anything to make forget my ex-boyfriend.

As Megan and I talked, I realized that I really enjoyed her excellent company. I also realized that I had a residual ability to engage with other human beings as I recovered from my hemorrhoid state. For a few moments that morning, I did forget about my ex-boyfriend.

Flash forward to 2024, and the amazing Maniac sent me this delightful book after reading this post!

Cubby and I have had a great time reading it together! And it’s really the perfect book for those who are stuck in that bittersweet time when your baby is transitioning out of being a baby and you’re both excited and pained by that. Thank you, Maniac, for being such a wonderful friend for the past 16 years despite the fact that we live on opposite sides of the country and you met me in a hemorrhoid state. I’m so blessed you didn’t run in the opposite direction, which I totally would have understood.

I was and am blessed to know you, sweet friend!

Oh, and to show I’m real, here I am at a recent work function. Even though it was technically a work function, Anthony and I had a blast! How I wish I could I could have double dates with you and Charlie, Maniac!

Okay, that’s all for today, tender friends! Thank you for stopping by, and thank you for sharing!

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