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PROGRAMMING NOTE from the Author and Archivist


So obviously I just stopped blogging on this platform. I'll get back to it eventually. Or not. I'm taking a break from all social media. It seemed necessary for my mental health.

The last few years have been busy and … challenging:

- 2015 Happened.
- 2016 Let's call it The Lost Year. (Obviously words failed me.)
- 2017 about broke me. Literally. Mentally.
- 2018 was ridiculous, proving 2017 was just a warm up. (Good thing I was already broken so it couldn't hurt as much.#2018TrashCanFire I thought things were going okay, but maybe not?)

- 2019 was such a blur. I know there were highlights, but then stuff happened and carried into the next year...

- And then in March#2020 really took a turn. Who can even categorize 2020? Do we dare?


I kinda want a do-over of some of the last few years. But life doesn’t work that way.


So for now, I'm hunkering down. Regrouping. Trying to stay safe and sort some stuff out.


Stay safe everyone. Stay well.

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Friday, February 24, 2012

40 Diamonds for 40: Journeys with Mrs. Jenn

One of the perils of allowing photos to be part of this 40 Diamonds project was knowing that I was opening Pandora's box. It's one thing when it's family, it's a whole other thing when you have friendships going back more than 30 years.

One of the longest enduring friendships I have dates from middle school, one of my 27 Jennifers -- Ms. Jenny, once Jen, and now Jenn, MRS. Jenn. After all this time, we have been mistaken for sisters, which is almost true at this point. If you look on my phone, she's id'd as: Jenn, Practically Sister.

Our path to a pair of "besties" has ebbed and flowed. I first met one of our core group, Shannon, in third grade and we survived elementary school together -- paired as "advanced" students and we were off doing our own thing in a reading group of two, perusing materials from the middle school curriculum. Then we traveled up the hill to middle school, where we met Jenny. Jenny became Jen and then Jenn, and she, Shannon, and I had various classes and activities that overlapped, and for a time, it was really Jenn and Shannon that were the closest.

These are some of the earliest surviving shots of the trio circa middle school. (The 1980s were not kind in so many fashion areas!)


Our middle school trio expanded to a quartet in high school with the addition of Rachel. We ate together, lockered near each other, had overlapping classes and interests, had sleepovers, traveled to NYC on school trips and Trips by Mary (tm), watched Anne of Green Gables and swooned over Gilbert Blythe together, and even all played "hookey" all at the same time (thanks Mom!).

High School: Senior Photos and Yearbook Candids o' Nettie and Jenny

I perfected my guerrilla photography techniques in the halls of the high school. From banquets, to ambushes by the lockers, Jenn was in the action -- with Rachel (l) and Shannon (c and r).

Don't let Ms. Prim and Proper fool you. She'll flip you off when the flash hits too. The '80s were the perm years, for both of us, but by senior year the layers were growing out - to 'fro status.


Graduation led all of us in different directions, first to college, then to different states and coasts, and different life and career paths. Even with social media, e-mail, and cell phones, we've lost track of people. From two, to three and four, now we're back down to two. Whenever I head back to New England, a trip is not complete without visiting Jenn, in whatever home she's residing. Even though one childhood homestead is gone, I know I always have a place at the White House Inn B&B with Jenn and her family.

Speaking of trips: No mention of Jenn could be complete without mentioning all the trips to the Cape, starting with a graduation trip with Shannon, my mom and grandma -- leading to duo trips with just me and Jenn. From whale watching trips, to exploring P-town, to old piers, and winding our way up and down Route 6A to Mashpee and back, the Cape is where we need to go to retreat -- preferably sometime soon, after a 40th trip to Newport.

Thanks Mrs. Jenny from the W-Block!
Happy Birthday to Auntie Nettie! The big 4-0!

So folks, here is my "Nettie story"...

I met Auntie Nettie when we were in 6th grade in Mrs. Moore's reading class at Kramer Middle School. Who knew then that so many years later we would still be friends, and actually I am happy to report--Best Friends. We’ve survived middle school, high school and college and are now enjoying the "Real World," as they call it.

To an outsider looking at us, we do have very different lives: I am married and living in the suburbs with my family and Auntie Nettie is single and living in/near the City; however, we have a past that ties us together, a present that keeps us in weekly contact and a future that may include us rocking together on a front porch when we are in our eighties!

We’ve been through good and bad, happy and sad and I consider myself lucky to have a friend like Auntie Nettie. While we have spent many happy times together exploring the Cape, watching USA network shows and discussing our Ranger vs. Morelli theories, I also know that if I am having a bad day, week or even month that Auntie Nettie always has an ear to listen to my troubles and a shoulder to cry on.

One of my happiest days was when she stood up for me as my Maid of Honor at my 2002 wedding. (Of course, she called in Maid of Horror! That is Auntie Nettie for you!) Hopefully she will attach the pictures as proof!

So Happy Birthday Nettie, and here's to 40 more for us! Meet you on the porch!

Love,

Jenn

(Only for Jenn -- bridal shower photos and bridal shots)



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