disclaimer: if you already vomit in your mouth a little at the kim, dominique, and stereo love triangle on the twitters then you may just want to skip this post and hey, it’s totally ok. i am not one to usually read on about people’s schmoopy schmoop either so it’s all good.
i mean, the internet in general has been pretty amazing this year. there’s a whole cool twittercrew from last year’s reverb that’s developed, and that’s neat. i was on the fringes of the reverb game last year so i wasn’t aware of them then. twitter has even helped me grow a relationship with a new friend (hi, shakti!) who i don’t get to see all that often, because life is busy. and of course, there are several new friends at work that i’m grateful for.
the thing is, i’d lost hope. i would look around me and feel so far away from these people who have had the same friends since 5th grade, or are still really close with their college friends. it seemed like everyone was just flourishing in these friend circles, while mine was splintering. the people i had held onto seemed busy and wrapped up in their own worlds, and i didn’t feel relevant anymore. i thought i’d exhausted my lifetime supply of kindreds and that was that. better hold on to what i’ve got now, because the friend conveyor belt has turned off. i was working hard on learning to deal with this fact and it hurt. a lot.
and i was so wrong. you know there are those people, that you read and you think, post after post, “i get this and i appreciate just the fact that the person who wrote this exists.” stereo and i started reading each other during last year’s reverb and it was just like the wires clicked into place, and the lightbulbs went on, and within two weeks we were calling each other sisters across an ocean. i’m so proud to know her. she’s smart and witty and a big burst of color in the world.
and then there is kim, who is a woman of brilliance and snark and a frighteningly good writer (also, tea connoisseur and chef). stereo introduced us after reverb, and again, the pieces fell together. when i took the moment (ok, day) to read her blog archives – i realized how lucky i was to already be in the door, because if i wasn’t, i would have started banging on it with a gavel.
i struggled to write those last two paragraphs because i can’t do these women justice, and i can’t properly express my gratitude that the new friendship machine wasn’t actually closed to me forever. it was a small personal miracle for me, and i’m thankful every day for it, and for them.
There aren’t words. You know there aren’t. One day, as time creeps by and we have a good five or so years under our belts, I think I might be adequately able to express exactly how grateful I am for having met both of you and how much you both mean to me. But for fear of actually blubbing all over my work desk, I’m going to excuse myself and escape to the bathroom for a few minutes (it’s one of those days).
Love and more love ♥
Love the love!
I’ve lost and gained and lost and gained many friends in my adult life. I think I’ve come up short in terms of numbers, but ahead in terms of quantity. It’s refreshing to read a post about finding people who make you happy and realizing you’re able to do so at any stage in the game.
<3 I'm glad we met!
I have never been more grateul for all the friends and new relationships I’ve been able to cultivate thanks to Twitter and Facebook. My life would not be anywhere near as rich as it is today if it were not for the likes of Stereo and others. In fact, this years #reverb11 wouldn’t have been possible for me had it not been for 3 twitter friends I was fortunate enough to meet during last years reverb10. So I get it. I SO get it and not having the words. I get that too. I think you did a beautiful job despite all that.
I am grateful to know you and read your lovely writing. I’m thankful for each and every one of you. <3
Who doesn’t love a good love fest? You are all remarkable women, moving writers and excellent companions on this journey. I feel blessed to know you.
great post, and I only vomited a little. I will never get over the community that reverb inspires. I too have made some friends here and hope to make more. Thanks for sharing.
Never worry about the loveliest! It warms the heart! So wonderful to see how we all matter to one another. 😀
Hells yes, those are two awesome ladies! I love how reverb bring all these amazing minds and talents together. 🙂
So I am like five weeks late to read this. This would have been the next post I read in my previous attempt to catch up (oy) had I not succumbed to a late-night gchat instead. BUT. No matter. I got here eventually, damn it all.
This is the thing: I would kind of love to be friends with everyone this way, but at the same time, everyone brings out something different in me, even people I love with a capital L. And it’s very, very, very rare for me to get along in a triad… I am usually better one-on-one. Somehow the two of you bring out something better in me that I usually don’t have access to. My last successful group friendship was in junior high, jsyk. It is super rare and I treasure it.
Anyway, I adore you and I cannot believe you read my archive, you are a crazy woman. About a third of those posts will not make it to the new site (!) so I hope you downloaded them all and printed them out into a flowery scrapbook. Muahahaahahahaha!