Anticipation Is A Good Thing

Ellie May and Jethro's godmother and i met when we were 12 years old, and have been friends ever since. 

Hard to top having a friend that has stuck with you through the years, through thick and thin, frizzy perms and fashion faux pas, cooking experiments, bad decisions, life's disasters and miracles, and yet is still willing to acknowledge you in public.

ALA's birthday is the day after mine, and we always celebrate together.  Some years we celebrate close to home, sometimes we take a little trip.  But we always have a good time.  This year's celebration is going to outshine them all, though.

You see, this is our Golden Birthday. 

ALA has decided that the celebration should be commensurate with the occasion.

And Boy, OH Boy, did she do it up right.

Many years ago, we worked out that she is much better at making the arraignments than i am--she does a lot of traveling and knows her way around a reservations desk, while i prefer to just show up someplace and hope they have a room.  I finally convinced her it is much safer if she just tells me where to meet and what we are doing.  I, for my part, show up on time, am happy to do anything, try to be entertaining, and hem her pants.

For our 34th birthday, we went to the Aspen Music Festival, and then did a little hiking at Maroon Bells. 

This was the trip where we figured out that our ideas of the perfect camping trip were diametrically opposed.  She is a bare bones primitive camper, and i tend to lean towards "roughing it is the Holiday Inn."  I will never forget the look on ALA's face at the outset of the trip, when she moved her single, solitary backpack over to the side of the trunk to make room for my pile of creature comforts.  She wanted to gather sticks to build a fire, then sit on a log while waiting for the water to boil to warm up the MRE's.  I wanted to lounge in the sunshine next to a babbling brook and cross-stitch while eating a sandwich from the cooler.

You see the problem.

I am fairly certain that she wanted to throttle me several times, but, as true friends do, she appears to have forgiven and forgotten.  It was truly a wonderful trip, even if ALA wouldn't let me pack in with my lawn chair and Match-Light.

On the side of that mountain, ALA and I decided that for our 40th birthday, we would hike Denali.

At that time, it looked very doable.  Of course, that was B.C.

As in Before Children. 

The next year, Ellie May arrived, and then, for our 40th, i turned up pregnant with Jethro, therefore, camping and hiking was WAAAYYYY out of the question.

Denali was put off until 45, which happened to be right after the fire, so it got put off again.

45 was fun though.  That year she came out this way, and then we headed to the boats in Shreveport.  As we were crossing the state line ALA pointed to a billboard advertising the senior buffet at one of the casinos and said excitedly, "Look!! When we come back here for our birthday in five years we will qualify for the Senior Discount!! 

It was at this moment that i realized the threshold in my life that i was standing on, and burst out crying. 

On my birthday, she teased about me being older than she, so the next morning, i greeted her with coffee and birthday pie and "Na na na na-na, Now you're o-old tooo-ooo, You're 45!!!"  To which she replied, "No, WE'RE 90!"

One day this past fall ALA calls and informs me that this is a momentous birthday, worthy of celebration in style, and asks if i think i can get away for a week (since kids and kids, the celebration is usually never more than an overnighter.)  Then she asked if i was up to flying, and i asked, how long?

"Three or four hours."

"Are we talking Denali?"

"Yup, this will be my birthday present to you."

My brain started out with "REALLY???!!!!???? DENALI???!!!!!!  A Dream Come True!!!!!"

And then that pesky common sense kicked in with, "HA!!!  Fat Chance!!!  No wheelchair ramps in Denali, sista!!  Gonna be a real problem totin' the oxygen tank along on THOSE trails!"

We had several conversations over the course of the next few days, in which ALA was trying to get a feel for what all i wanted to do on this trip...should we fly in here or there?  Do you want to do this or that?  What kind of excursion should we make?

And the whole time one part of me is going "!!!!!!!!"  and the other part is going "i am soooo not up to this...i will die on the trail and ALA will have to bring my body back down the mountain.  On the up side, i will probably expire fairly quickly, so she won't have to drag the body too far."

I was trying not to squelch the beautiful gift or compromise ALA's dreams and good times, but was sincerely concerned, when finally i said, "Look, i need clean towels about every third day, and if there is a buffet involved, that is even better."

To which she replied, "THANK GOODNESS!!!!  I am too old to sleep comfortably on the ground any more!!  How about a CRUISE??"

To which I replied, ""!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

Am i not the luckiest girl in the world to have such a friend?  Not only is she taking me on this breath taking, once in a lifetime adventure, but she has given me a salve for my weary soul... 

...Something happy and exciting to look forward to!!

And so, you see, ALA and i are currently anticipating our 50th birthday and seven days at sea, glacier viewing, whale watching, wildlife spotting, balcony lounging, day trips, floor shows, and shuffleboard.

And Buffets.

I am speechless, and overcome with emotion.

Excuse me while i go dry my eyes and blow my nose.