Thursday, December 18, 2008

My Friend Is Coming For A Visit!

My friend from Crossville, Tn is coming to spend a few days with me. I am so excited, I can hardly sit still.

I haven't seen her in a while, and we have a lot of catching up to do. We have a lot of places to go and a lot of people to see while she's here.

Maybe I can get someone to take a picture of us together, and with her permission, I'll post it.

Let me tell you a little bit about how I came to have this wonderful friend.

For a few years a company called AIA, American International Airways from Yipsalanti, Mi came to the Blytheville airbase and set up camp for about 4 months, and got everything ready to move Christmas mail for about 2 weeks with the program ending with the last of the mail going out Christmas Eve.

In 1994, I had just graduated from the university, and was looking for a job. They held a job fair on campus, and I signed up. In Octover, I went to work for the Blytheville operation and worked as secretary/personal assistant/general flunky to the ramp manager.

During this time, the ramp manager and others took applications, interviewed and processed the people who would eventually fill all the positions to make this event come off with as few hitches as possible. As these people were hired, part of my job was to work with, via phone, the HR people in Michigan. I got to know Jan and Amy quite well as we spoke on the phone several times daily.

They and several others came to work on site the last two or three weeks of the project. It was as if I had known these two gals all my life. We became instant friends and had a lot of fun together.

When the day came to go home, everyone packed up and headed back to Michigan. Jan and her husband(he also worked on the project) took their camper they'd been living in and went back home. They also adopted a cat they took back with them. Amy left a piece of her heart here when she left. She was falling in love with one of the crew managers.

In January, the crew manager called me one day and asked if I wanted to go to Michigan. He didn't have to ask twice. We loaded up and off we went. I stayed with Jan, her husband and all the pets, while the above mentioned crew manager spent time with Amy and her family.

Next thing I know, there's been a wedding date set and it's back to Michigan for the ceremony. I flew this time and Jan and her hubby picked me up at the airport and I spent the weekend with them and we all went to the wedding.

Gee that was a long time ago. A lot has happened. A year or two later, Jan stayed with me while she worked on the Blytheville mail project. They actually called it C-Net. The next year they put her up in base housing, but we spent as much time as we could together, and my grandson and I went home with her for a few days. By this time, she and her family including in-laws had moved to Crossville, Tn.

The years have flown, and we don't get to see each other as much as we'd like, but, she's coming, and if nothing happens, will be at my house when I get home. Sure hope she has supper ready.

This is the time of year to think about people far away. It's time to remember friends and relatives we don't see often. It's time to be thankful.

Who would you like to spend some time with for the Holiday Season?

Have a great Thursday. Pray for our country. Love one another.

3 comments:

Laura ~Peach~ said...

oh how wonderful!!!!! I hope you all have a wonderful time!!!!!

Lisa said...

That is such a sweet story, I love how friends just build those bonds over the years. But whatever happened to the young married couple?

Vintage Chicken said...

I hope you and your friend have a wonderful time together!

Have a great weekend!

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