Some of you may recognize that as the opening line from the Golden Girls theme song.  The original Sex in the City, those gals were.  Candace Bushnell, you didn’t create shit.  You just turned back the clock.

This is not about the Golden Girls, however (sorry, maybe another time).  This is about friends.  I wrote a post about friendship on the old blog, but allow me to further elucidate.

My best friends have a nasty habit of moving away.  And I’m not talking move across town, I’m talking across the country or sometimes across the world.  I’m hoping it has more to do with their adventurous lives and less to do with my company, but who knows.  My best female friend currently lives in Japan, with her Navy husband.  We’ve been friends since we were 14, but for most of our adult best-friendship, she has lived in Alaska, Florida, and Japan.  It does give us someone perfect to drunk dial (she’s 14 hours ahead of my time), but I’d still rather her be here.

My best male friend recently moved back to his hometown of New York City (you may have heard of it).  I miss him even more than I expected, and what really sucks is there’s nothing you can do when your friend moves.  A significant other is considering moving to another city, and you can make a commitment.  Stay here, and I’ll will nuptial you up.  But a friend- what am I supposed to say?  Stay here, and I will get us best-friend necklaces!  I will sign a document stating I’ll be your Best Friend Forever, and even have it notarized!

Friendship is the rare relationship that is maintained and ensured via communication alone.  Your parents, spouse, children, and business associates all get paperwork to back their ass up.  But friendship is created and dissolved only by the willingness of its participants.

I make a huge deal about my birthday most years.  I guess because it’s halfway between Thanksgiving and Christmas, and if I don’t make a big deal, no one will.  I invite basically everyone I know, because I consider them all friends.  When the evite goes out, and people see 250+ on the list, I’m sure they are surprised.  But once a friend, always a friend as far as I’m concerned, and if someone showed up even though I hadn’t seen them in 3 years, I’m just as happy to see them as the people I see every week.

What this rambling boils down to is that friendship is unlike anything else out there.  It takes effort and is the standard for unconditional love.  I have the best friends in the world, and that, my dear, is Golden.