Now that you are hopefully seeing a bit more of the bigger picture, that you truly are not a freak of nature, and that you are not alone, allow me to introduce to you a few of the fabulous gals in my life that are doing exactly just that.
These friends of mine will hopefully become sisters and mentors to you as we journey together ahead. Let them be of comfort to you when you wake up one day and find that you have grown up and gotten single.
SOME DAY MY PRINCE WILL COME.
My friend Sadie and I are both Screen Actors Guild members. Sounds impressive, but when you realize that only 2% of the union’s acting members rarely make over $5000 per year from this profession, it isn’t such an elite group. But I digress. My friend is a doll. So cute. Red hair. Vibrant personality. She has been a musician, actress, and dancer. We both have done the Hollywood thing. (Well, Ok, the starving artist thing if you must know.) You get the picture: get an agent, act, do commercials and theatre, write music, record, travel etc. It’s funny, because when I talk with her about certain celebrities that we both have met or come to know through the years, she will say, “Oh, yes, I worked them”, or, “I sang with them.” Or, ” I knew her when she was getting ready to marry husband number two”. Sadie has a PHD and has had a successful music business for years. She is 57 and has never been married.
My friend Chloe is adorable. She finally turned 40 this year. (A right of passage in my opinion). She is a size 2 and could model. And I am not kidding. I recently returned from a trip with her that took us to Sydney, Australia. The men (who weren’t gay) looked at her. They didn’t even see me! Not only that. She got kissed by a koala, and I got kicked by a kangaroo. But that’s another story.
She works with authors, travels internationally, does video interviews, etc. A true southern belle, she knows how to play the game and play it well. What I mean is she is great under pressure and with people. I so wish I could be like that. But I’m not. Chloe doesn’t blab her problems to anyone who will listen like I do. She internalizes them. Whatever comes into my mind, usually exits my mouth. After that, I realize what I said. But Chloe doesn’t do that. (The one thing we do have in common is that we are both only children. Sans siblings.) Chloe is just cool. She too, has never been married.
Gracie is an adorable blonde. And I mean cute. Five foot three. Tan. Sporty. Loves to listen to sports talk radio. Exercises religiously. Spent 2 years in Russia teaching English. Has been down the Amazon River. Did a couple of weeks in India. Shall I go on? Not surprisingly, her family is giving her quite a bit of pressure of late. She is the eldest of two. Her younger brother is happily married, with five kids! She has now been very involved with an online dating service for over a year now. She has had plenty of dates.The guys love her. But nothing is clicking for her. Gracie is always bubbly and incredibly positive. She could scale Mt. Rushmore if she wanted to. I love her zest for life and can do spirit. She is 41 and not-yet-married.
Noel is tall. Blonde. Sharp as a tack. She could model too. Her mother did. Her dad was a flying ace. Noel was raised in the military world. Moved a lot. Very patriotic. She has her own company and literally knows, or is connected to just about everybody. She is very humble, but has worked with many celebrities. She is quick, a sensitive listener and a good encourager. I know Noel will play it straight with me. If I need to hear something, in time, in a tactful way, she will lay it on me. Like the day I was complaining about something and she stopped me short. You need counseling. Here’s a number.
She just got back from helping a friend with a housing situation in another state. On the way back, she saw the car in front of her suddenly flip multiple times. It was a college student heading back to campus. Long story short, the teenager didn’t make it. This has been a very traumatic week for my friend. But she is good about making the right decision in this type of situation. She contacted the funeral home (Which was states away) and ended up connecting with the girl’s mother. She assured the grieving parent that the girl was not alone when she died.Noel had gathered up all of the girl’s belongings and made sure they got back to the parents. The mother ended up calling Noel to thank her and to say that she was most grateful for all she did. My friend is confident enough to go to counseling for a few sessions over this. She knows she needs to deal with it and isn’t about to waste anytime. She wants to do it right. She is always the professional. I admire that. As I write this, she is aboard a United States aircraft carrier –teaching!. She is 41 and has never been married.
Elle is one of 7 children. Raised Irish catholic, she has the very groovy spin on life that can only come from that type of zaney familial environment. If the world ended tomorrow, “L”, as we refer to her, would be there to clean up, offer counsel, and then rise like a phoenix from the ashes with about 5 fabulous stories to tell afterward that would leave everyone in stitches. She is truly a role model to me. She eats completely organic and is always on a detox of some sort. She is incredibly healthy and doesn’t need a drop of makeup. Her father is living with her as I write this. (Yes, the single sibling has the dad and they are having a ball.) An artist, she is a hand illustrator by trade and too has her own business. Elle has managed not only to buy a new house but I think at last count has two rental properties. When I grow up, I’d like to be her. She is 46. She has never been married.
So, these are just a few of my very fab friends. I assure you, if you joined us for coffee you would want to schedule them into your calendar for weekly girl time. They just plain rock.
In the days ahead, you will meet a few more. It is my hope that you might feel a connection to one of them and that perhaps you will feel that you have found a support group of sorts that you can relate to!
S.