Why I blog (reason #999)

So I heard from a friend today via email that I haven't had a "live" conversation with in years (remember the pub in Sacto?) but whom I often think of. She's one of the few people from high school that I still try to keep in touch with. We both get busy, exchange a few brief emails and then keep running through our daily lives but she's one of those people that once you've been friends with you can never NOT have her in your heart.

I hadn't heard from her in a year or more. I assumed she got busy with work and life, ect. Last time we checked in she was working 60+ hour work weeks and traveling to Africa. Why on earth would she be concerned with keeping up with me, tucked away here in little old Arcata? Day to day, my life changes very little compared to hers.

Today I checked an old email account I rarely use anymore. It was a fluke. I had a few extra minutes at lunch and thought I would clean out some of the laptop and viagra ads that were surely accumulating. What do you know -- there she was.

Subject line: My name is *** and I am a very, very bad friend.

It felt like Christmas arrived early. With all the drama pushing its way to the forefront of my life lately this was a welcome bit of good news. My friend was still there. Not only that -- she'd been reading my blog since Clarion and when she found out about my dad she wanted to let me know she was thinking about me.

I guess this is why I'm here. Sure, along the way I may pick up a few outsiders who are for some reason interested in the goings on of my crazy life. It's nice to have a place to vent. It's fun to share my random stories and internet findings.

But deep down it's just my way of staying in touch, of keeping connected to the people that matter the most -- even if I don't always know they're out there.

So this one's for you, and you know who you are. You are not a very bad friend, you never have been, you never will be -- I'm pretty crappy keeping up with email too. Have fun in Africa. Let's sit down for a beer soon.