daily bliss: long chats with old friends

Tonight my friend E called and we chatted for an hour and a half. We have a marathon talk session every other month, and catch up on the big news and the quotidian details that keep us connected. We're already planning summer visits, and dreaming of warmer days when our group of friends can travel out to Iowa to see E and S's home for the first time.

Last night, my colleague and friend J and I talked at length about how to survive life on the tenure track, and how to pace a career. J is wise and optimistic, and I value her candor and her compassion:)

Last week in New Orleans, S and I had a wonderful long talk in Starbucks, skipping out on a conference panel as our conversation wended to cover the different terrain of our lives--the new mother and the single woman. And, over a delightful dinner at Bacco, K and I talked about creativity and tranquility and how to make our lives more in line with our ideals.

The list of friends I need to call or sit down with is long, as it becomes increasingly difficult to maintain those stronger connections over space and time, but I will slowly work my way through the list and gather my friends close, if only for an hour or two on the phone.