The upcoming weekend

Oh, you have no idea how excited I am for this upcoming visit from my Hoe. Well, maybe you do since I've been talking about it for some time now! Over the time of my blog I'm sure I've told you a little about Hoe, and so you're thinking...'Big deal, a nice little visit.' For me it's a big deal. Let me take you back... *cue mystery music with sparkly sounds taking us back....way back*

I met Hoe when I was almost 4 years old. My family had just moved to Colorado, had built a house in a new neighborhood, and of course I knew no one. Not that 3-4yr olds have a big group of friends, but I was out of my element. Hoe's family had just moved to Colorado from upstate New York. I remember walking around the block of my new neighborhood and going up to this door, ringing the doorbell and waiting. A beautiful lady opened the door and I said, "Do you have any little girls?" She smiled, let me in and there were two girls there. An older one and one that was about my height, my age, and she had a shy impish smile. We hit it off right away. I'm sure my mom was there some place, how irresponsible would it be to let your 4yr old daughter walk around the block by herself, but I don't remember that part.

Fast forward a year and I remember us walking to kindergarten together that first day. Her sister, evil just like my older brother, walking ahead of us, pretending not to know us. (And yes, these were the years where kids actually walked to school...by themselves...almost a mile!) We were in the same class, not to happen again until much later, and we stood outside the classroom door, all lined up waiting to go in. I remember that afternoon, notes pinned to our dresses and me falling down, seeing blood and throwing up. I remember her being there with me the entire time.

Elementary - We started brownies together and stayed in scouts longer than most people would imagine. I remember at Easter that we would have matching dresses and at the start of school we had the same Keds shoes. I remember playing on the playground together, even when we were in different classrooms. Throughout elementary she had the BEST toys...she would get barbies and I got a little brother. We played at her house a lot because she had the goods. But every day after school she was at my house until her parents came home, my mom watched the neighbor kids.

Jr. High - Oh my Hoe wanted to be popular, she already was. She tried out different groups, the stoner group, the intellectual group, the music geek group...she was everywhere. I was solidly in with the intellectual/music geeky group. We still had sleep overs at her house, the same as we did when we were little. What I know now, that I couldn't have known then, was she was in a complicated household. I think as kids we really don't pay attention or think about other people's households. We assume that they are all the same. My dad worked nights and on his days off had a beer. My mom worked at the school, was home with us all the time and went to all of my events. Her dad worked nights as well and when he was off had more beers than he should. Her mom worked an 8-5 job, if not longer hours, and was hardly there for her events. Her parents didn't get along in the private space of their home. If you saw them at a party you'd never know it. A case of 'let's stay together for the kids.'

High School - Oh the drama of high school. Hoe was still on her quest to be popular (again, she already was) and I was still in my same little group of friends. I had a lot of friends. Hoe and I were still best friends though. We rode to school together, we always had each others back, and our household situations were still the same. We only had a couple of major fights throughout this time. One was because I couldn't resist teasing her until her breaking point, that was when she threw me up against a locker...and everyone got mad at her. Whoops. One other time was over a boy, she didn't want him, we started dating and she decided that was not a good idea...just because she didn't want him didn't mean anyone else (let alone me!) should have him. But we dated and became serious. Then....

The summer after HS - Hoe used to go back to upstate NY every summer and she asked me to go. I never thought my mom would let me as she was the Queen of No. However, surprisingly to everyone she let me go...for the entire summer. Hoe had her objectives for the summer. 1. Breakup me and the boy 2. Get me drunk and 3. Get me laid. I'll tell you that she was successful in all three. And that summer shaped who I am today. I broke up with said 'boy', met a new boy who I fell in love with (and suffered my first heartbreak later that year), lost my virginity to that boy, and drank my first sips of alcohol. Not all in one night mind you!

College - Hoe and I went to different schools. I wanted to, HAD to, get away from Colorado. NEEDED to get away from everyone and everything I knew. She went to a smaller school in Durango, I went to the big-ass campus of Arizona State. I was a number, she was a force. But, we remained close and talked on the phone a lot. She came to visit me, I went to visit her. We could go months without talking, but when we did it was like nothing had been missed. We worked summer jobs together when we were back in town for those months. She got me a construction job, we were flaggers, in tight jeans and t-shirts, downtown Denver, driving the menfolk crazy.

After college - Hoe went back to Denver and worked various jobs and finally got into the industry that she wanted...radio. She climbed her way up, the hard way, and is now a very successful very recognizable figure in the world of DJ. Me, well...I majored in music, started waiting tables my last semester of school and finally (FINALLY) found my true rebellion. I graduated and stayed at the restaurant, meeting a new crowd of people who spent all their free time and money on having a good time. I let loose, like really let loose for about 6 months. During that time I met Trainer and how we got together? Yeah, I've covered that right? Obviously we got married and then bought a house. Hoe came to visit me once I after we bought the house, she met my pups and I had a girls night for her. And then I moved once more.

Present day - See, we have this special history. We have dark, deep, secrets that only we know and only we will ever know. Not the kind of secrets that you are thinking. Mostly about our families, our lives, the heartache and triumphs. The ones that usually go down in your journal because you are afraid to share it out loud and be criticized. I love her so much, just like a sister. That's why this means so much to me, this little visit. And bonus, I get to meet her new guy, I think he's the one who actually made this happen. So I'm grateful and thankful that he's in her life so we have this time to make more memories.

Future - One day Hoe and I will own a house together in upstate NY and we'll be rocking our chairs on the porch. We'll hoot and holler at the young men driving by in their truck or on their Harley's. We'll go to the grave with most of those secrets and memories. And we'll always be together.