That’s what friends are for

When it comes to having friends, I like to have a wide variety, mostly because I can live vicariously through them.

One friend of mine equates athletic activities to being as necessary as breathing. Needless to say, she puts me to shame in the “get out there and move” department, but I’m not the one sidelined with yet another concussion.

I’ve suggested that she wrap herself in bubble wrap, never leave her bed without a helmet or stop all extreme sports immediately, but all these suggestions have fallen on deaf ears.

Although we are good friends, I just can’t imagine why she has this compelling need to test the limits of her human condition. I told her she’s going to run out of body before she runs out of life. Then what will she do?

Fortunately, I can enjoy her tales of sports and explorations without paying the price that she does.

I only have to take a quick look through my social media outlets to see my friends run the gamut of political leanings. In what should be a horribly contentious election year, either my friends are holding back on how they really feel or the pandemic has preoccupied their thoughts and actions. It’s just as well as I’m in no mood to put up with the mudslinging that went on in the last election. I can appreciate good humor at the expense of our political figures, but I’m more than tired of the vicious banter that so often replaces healthy debates about important issues.

Although it seems most people are drifting away from the in-your-face confrontational style of communication, it’s hard to say if that’s because it gets old really fast or if it’s because there have been so many causes to go out and protest at that it consumes that excess energy.

I’ve only got so much energy to go around, so I’ve been conserving it as much as I can. I’ve come to realize that a well-deserved and perfectly timed nap can be just as therapeutic as jotting off a letter to those in politics. Who am I kidding? I’ve never written a letter to any political figure, and there’s no really bad time for taking a nap.

I’ve been helping another friend go through what can only be described as mounds of recipe cards. Having been a caterer for many years, she has a lot to go through. It’s getting easier to fill up the “toss” pile knowing the internet will find anything that’s really needed. I know I haven’t parted with my personal collection of recipes because of the sentimental value they hold — a note written by Mom, a gold star — either of those can set me off on a trip down memory lane.

Perhaps the friends I appreciate most are the outdoorsy ones. I enjoy their infinite numbers of photos of the great outdoors and all its beauty. Lately, several have been sharing pictures of reactions to bug bites or weed rashes; this is information I can do without. I can’t unsee that! I’m sure they’ll all heal, and I rest comfortably knowing it wasn’t me paying the price for outdoor exploration.

Miriam Nelson is the news editor of the Wittenberg Enterprise & Birnamwood News. Readers can contact her at mnelson@newmedia-wi.com.