Wednesday, January 19, 2005

Who's on first?

I met my friend for dinner tonight, at the Chinese restaurant where Shoney's used to be. Shoney's Chinese, we call it. Not to be confused with the K-Mart Chinese, the WalMart Chinese, or the Rax Roast Beef Mexican place.

The nearest town is not a lucky location for restaurants.

Plus, if you buy an existing restaurant there, it will do you no good to change the name to one of your liking. Buy a new sign, give out business cards, advertise in the paper, nothing will ever do any good. Sponsor T-Ball leagues, give out prizes at school carnivals, give out coupons for freebies: it doesn't matter.

You opened your Chinese restaurant in the old Shoney's building, and that is what people call it.

I don't even remember the actual name of this restaurant. It's Shoney's Chinese, that's all I know.

Shoney's has great Chinese food.

My sweet friend is also Belle's former German teacher at high school. Yes, Belle, I had dinner with Frau tonight. I thanked her again for teaching you so well that you passed out of three semesters of German at the university. But that is not why we are friends. We'd be friends even if you had been stupid and she'd been forced to fail you.

We have mutual likes, mutual loves, and mutual hatreds. And just enough differences to make it all interesting. Stir it all up in a big iron pot, and you've got fun and laughter and sympathy and devilment.

She came over to the house after we ate, and I showed her how to set up her school website. I showed her some other things, as well. And talked about them.

I showed her that picture of you with your violin. The one where you were showing some serious leg.

We discussed why you absolutely refused to go to Prom with that boy she tried to set you up with, your junior year.

We talked about how beautiful you looked at Bess's wedding.

She told me some interesting things about you, too. I shall save them to use against you at a later date.

It's one thing when a parent loves a child unconditionally; that is to be expected. It's another thing, a really good thing, when your child's friends' parents love your child unconditionally. But when your child's teacher loves your child, it's a very special thing indeed.

No one ever outgrows the need for good, true friends. Spouses, children, and family are wonderful things, but don't ever lose track of your friends. You need them, and they need you.

We are truly ourselves with a friend, in ways that we can never be with family. With friends, we are what we were, before we became the head of a family.

Family comes first. But friends come first, too.

It just depends on what "game" you're playing.