You People Are Awesome and Other Wonderful Things. Finally.

So we're not all weepy doom-and-gloomers over here (only mostly, but sometimes not).

Today I got to obsessively read over all of your comments on Facebook for my last blog, and for all of the awfulness of 2013, the things that have come through clearly for me are as follows:

1. I have some seriously awesome people rooting for Sicily and me (yes, grammar police, that is correct), and I mean seriously awesome people who usually flinch at cursing but not the cursing in this blog, and seriously awesome people who know how chronically difficult I can be normally, much less post mortem, and they stick around anyway, and seriously awesome people whom I have known for a DOG'S AGE and who have consistently been there for me when I really needed them, the kind of people I knew well the moment I met them, either last month or 25 years ago, and who have stuck life out with me, regardless of how far away I moved, how drunk I was or how long it had been. And speaking of that...

2. I have been just a so-so friend. Not horrible, not INCREDIBLE, just consistently mediocre. Better for some than others. I have missed weddings, baby births and other milestones. I have forgotten birthdays, not called when I said I would and just generally bailed. I am not beating myself up because of this, just making a note. HINT: If you need something, right now is both the very best and the very worst time to ask. Roll the dice. If it involves travel, we are probably in. If it involves moving, don't ask. #MovingSucks

3. There is a constant battle in this world to move veryveryvery quickly. I REJECT that. Flat out. I can't believe everything we have been rushing to for the past ten years and how little most of it really means. Whenever we start rushing to things in our house, we get short-tempered and ill-mannered. There is cursing and lots of it (come to think of it, our standards on cursing have relaxed quite a bit. For both myself and for the 13-year-old. For the record also, the 13-year-old has been cursing since she was 2, and she is very adept. A quick study.). This rejection of a faster pace may translate to some as being lazy. That's okay. We'll get over it.

That's it. I have learned a lot more recently, but I mostly wanted to end the week with a message of gratitude and humility in the face of all of the awesome people I know. You could power a small city with your awesomeness, and I am grateful that you choose to shine your light on my family of two.