The Return of the Bibliophile

So something very exciting happened yesterday! No, I did not win the lottery or meet the man of my dreams. I didn't do something adventurous and out of the ordinary. It wasn't happy because it stayed sunny all day instead of raining (probably because that's not what happened at all) and it wasn't because I ate at Cafe Rio, although that contributed to the special something I am referring to.

I am delighted because the Bibliophile returned to Salt Lake City!!! Yay!! The Bibliophile is my former roommate and great friend. We lived together for almost two years. She moved out last April so she could finish her last semester of school and shortly afterwards moved across the country. Happy for her that she was close to her family but sad for me as she was now 2,000 miles away. I got to visit her in March when I went to D.C., which was wonderful, but it's so great to have her back on SLC!!

She has many people she'd like to see while she's here, so I'm trying to help facilitate that as much as I can. Our dinner/ice creaming plans with a couple good friends fell through last night, but we had several close friends over for dinner tonight, and we visited our old ward today so she got to see more people she knows. Tomorrow she'll head Utah County direction to stay with a good friend for a couple days and then come back on Wednesday. Friday we'll be heading to Rexburg for our friend's wedding, which is mainly the reason she came out here.

Anyway, the point of this whole rambling post is that I'm delighted she's here!! She is one of my closest friends, and it's wonderful to have her back again, even for a short time. I'm sure she wouldn't like me to say this, but she is truly a kindred spirit. I may or may not have stories about her to post here later. . . :)

In the meantime, enjoy these couple pictures of her that I took last night, especially the second one. Let's hear it for sass!

I'm very thankful for. . .

I'm going to mostly write this post mostly about one person, but it's really dedicated to many people--those who are good friends in my life. Please don't be put off as I sing praises about Speak; I could say wonderful things about all of you, but this time I'm mostly going to talk about Speak, probably because I'm glad to have her back again after recent absences, for good reasons, mind you. I can already see the big grin on her face as she reads this and hear her tell me that she knows it because "it's me" (meaning herself of course, but it wouldn't be Speak if she didn't say that).

Ever since she moved in a year ago, she has made my life a much more interesting and happy place. From the sassiness she brings out in me (I love it as much as she does) to the new ideas she often forces me to think about (or rather presents to me and then I keep thinking about them) to the trips we take to Loopy Land, and Stars Hollow, together, we've had a fabulous time! Yes, she is officially one of my favorite people ever.

She just wrote a blog post about a song that talks about the concept that "All will be well." Okay it's really about a song that mentions that phrase, but it still impacted me as I read about it. I like that idea because it's a good reminder that even if things aren't going swimmingly at one moment in time, they will get better. I will pass through the hard times that come my way and rise triumphant on the other side. All will be well. Thank you for that insight, Speak!

I also need to give a little shout out to my very dear Heidi and Jamie, who provided a much-needed escape last Sunday. Since Speak was gone, I was going to be left alone with Stew and Smile, her boyfriend. Don't get me wrong--I love Stew dearly but hanging out by yourself with a seriously dating couple is just not fun. However, Heidi and Jamie were kind enough to open their home to me and provided great company, wonderful conversation and some quality Gilmore Girls time last Sunday! Thanks, ladies!

I would be very ungrateful if I didn't say thanks to all of the wonderful friends in my life. It almost makes me cry thinking about how blessed I am to have such good friends. You know you who are, and perhaps you're even reading this right now. :) Please know that although I've mentioned only Speak, Jamie and Heidi in this post, that I am grateful to each and every one of you who has a special place in my heart for being such a dear friend.