Give me a...Ho...

ho....ho!

I'm sitting on the sofa nursing the remnants of my hangover that I earned last night.  I thought I was doing pretty well because I've had my very, very hungover friend as a point of reference - and up to the point where she went home she was, without doubt, the most hungover person in the room.  However, now that I'm sitting here on my tod, I realise that I now hold that coveted title....poop!  The good news is that in a few minutes it's going to be Christmas and that means a new day - so automatically I'll feel a zillion times better....cannae wait!

This evening I received an email from a friend of mine.  We went to school together and we haven't seen each other since we left....what would that be...9yrs or so?? *cough*  Anyway, I think it was last year that we started to chat via facebook and then we moved on to good ol' email.  He began his email apologising for being a crap efriend, which made me laugh...he's my only efriend, which means he's both the crappiest and the bestest, so why apologise? 

This got me thinking about the different types of friendships there are and the expectations we attach to them.  There's your best friend(s)/close circle of friends, the 'meet up at parties, have a great time but never meet up otherwise' friends, childhood/long term friends who you think know everything about you and you them, friends who you don't have to keep in touch with everyday but the minute you want/need them - they are there - no questions asked, the friends who you met through a certain experience/period in your life who you may or may not keep in touch with, Uni friends, meet for an afternoon coffee on a Tuesday friend, random friends, friend of friends the list goes on. 

I think the most dangerous out of that lot is the childhood/long term friends.  It's the knowing everything about each other bit which disturbs me most.  It's a double edged sword.  On one side, it's brilliant.  They accept you, warts & all, they are the people who know what to do or not do in certain situations (eg. when you're being hormonal and being a completely irrational grinch), they know how to make you laugh (usually by reminding you of experiences shared, most likely something embarrassing that you'd rather forget, but the older one gets the less you mind because it serves as a reminder that there was a time where you just didn't give a ****), they should be the one person with whom you can be yourself - no explanation required thank you very much....on the other hand they also have the power/ability to embarrass/pull you up/remind you of past behaviours, actions, words spoken.  Fair enough...because as long as it's a two way street. 

I think where it gets difficult is if either person (or both of you) don't pay attention to who the other person is today or if boundries are pushed that teensy bit too far.  I'm guilty as charged, and I've also been on the recieving end.  Fun?  Nope.  But in the grand scheme of things if the good outweighs the bad, and as long as it's something you can use to your advantage in the future - suck it up and save it!

I am a very, very lucky gal...I have amazing friends.  I have friends who will drop everything to be there for me, or will forgive me when I'm grumpy/irrational/forgetful/insensitive/*add your own adjective*.  There are friends who come & go ~ that's life ~ (hopefully) both parties move on with great memories, and perhaps one day we'll pick up that friendship once again in the future in whatever form it may take.  There are also the friends who you've known all/most of your life and you know will continue to be there at the side lines to remind  you of that time you decided to give your little sister a 'proper' hair cut when playing hairdressers...if only mum's orange handled scissors hadn't looked like they belonged with my toy hairdressing set...then the idea would never have occurred!!

But getting back to my efriend (who I dated for the grand total of 5 days back in school...it was a lucky escape for him, and doesn't he know it!!)...as I said at the beginning, he's my only efriend and so he's my bestest efriend, what a lucky, lucky man!  I'm sure if he reads this he's going to feel like all his Christmas wishes have come true...which is lucky what with it being the 25th December an all!!

Merry Christmas friends past, present & future...here's to a happy, healthy & peaceful 2012!!