Mercigiving

As I have been mulling/humming/daydreaming/nightdreaming over life the past few years, nothing has made more sense to me other than the feeling I have of gratefulness/blessedness/thankfulness/lucky-ness as of late.

I have a handful of ridiculously fantastic folk in my life and a few deserve special mention in 2010.

**Kari has been my sounding board through some of my ugliest days. We've shared more than several bonding moments over wacko life events and more so she has listened to me complain, rant, cheer, rave, cry and ponder nearly every single thought that has crossed my mind. She is also responsible for keeping me in the loop of current pop culture! Kari opened her basement to me in August when I found out I needed to be out of my house in 48 hours; a mentally and physically exhausting weekend. She helped me pack up my kitchen (and I will hire her out to anyone who needs a quality-control specialist in dish packing), and then filled her car with all my food and other kitchen items that I didn't want to put in the 10x20 and unloaded it in her basement. It was a "come on knock on my door..." lifestyle for about 3 weeks living with her and Dan, her "special friend" ;). It was also a great time-and I often wish I was still there. And I am forever grateful, thank you so much.

**All of the doctors, nurses, surgeons, family and friends that have diagnosed, cut open, sewn back up, sent cards, infused with chemo drugs, handed kleenex to, facebook-friended, drawn blood from, hugged and smiled at my mom deserve a big ol' hug from me. Through a crazy several months of a cancer diagnosis and on-going treatment, thank you for caring for her. I am constantly amazed at how dang strong she was and is, through all of this. She remarked the other day that 1-she can't imagine what life was like before all of this and 2-that she thinks she wants to show off her incoming (grey) hair. Thank you to everyone for being there for her as I cannot be there every day. My whole family is grateful for your love and support now and in the future.

**Lindsay is one more rock in my life. My summer schedule was nuts again this year (the first half anyway!) and during my down time Lindsay and I would spend it slathered in product on her deck, in the pool or at a baseball game. My favorite summer moments are spent with her and her fantastic family. We made several trips to our home-away-from-pool Target Field, Walgreens for a late-night pharmaceutical purchase and drank perhaps one too many beverages from time to time. Lindsay understands what I am going through with my mom...she lost her aunt to the same disease about one year ago. About 30 minutes after I told her I needed to pack my entire house (which was about 8 minutes after I found out myself) she picked me up and brought me to Target to purchase Rubbermaid bins. We packed (sort of) for a short while and decided that drinking heavily was the best coping mechanism at this time. What started with pizza, commentary from Keith, baseball and birthday cake for her brother proceeded to martini's and 21-year olds at the Martini Lounge to quasi-bar hopping through downtown to special-needs employees at McDonald's in the drive thru window, to peeing on a tree at the golf course to watching Jersey Shore in her brothers bed eating the McDonald's. It was a night to remember and exactly what I needed (other than a major hangover while trying to pack that next day). Lindsay also knows my trials with my ex and knows his behavior patterns....offering me a place to stay anytime I need it. Her family is a huge part of why I love her so much - I love all of the Andersons. I am grateful for everything ALL of you do for me - thank you so much. I cannot wait for another summer of WTP and getting nutty.

**My dad was my sherpa, or as he called himself, "my caddy" in Racine for my biggest race of my life (so far). We traveled from St. Cloud (him from Duluth) to Racine, WI together for Ironman 70.3 Racine in July. He helped me haul all my stuff around, held my bags, drove me nuts a few times, cheered for me, played photographer, drove me back to the hotel when I forgot the race number for my bike, walked the mile down the beach the morning of the race and kept me calm, kept me up at night with her Boeing-like snoring, supported me through the entire weekend and bought me my first finishers beer. I will always remember seeing him at the finish line with his hand up for a high-five yelling "alright, Erin!." He understands sports and he understood how much preparation I put in for this event. I cannot wait to have him caddy for me again this year! Thank you, dad! I'll say it again, I could NOT have done it without you.

**I spent a fantastic 3 days in Vegas with Ryan at a completely inappropriate time relative to my training for Racine and how I rounded up the funds for this trip has yet to become clear to me. The trip gave me a chance to get out of town and away from some of the ugliness that seemed to rear its head during that part of the summer. Living it up in Vegas with him as well as his awesome aunt and uncle was everything I needed at the time. This out of Erin-character behavior included drinking quite a bit, staying up ridiculously late, becoming even more skeptical and adjusting my ethnicity while lying in the Vegas sun. Thank you for your friendship, I miss you all the time. So does Nip. And Sweet Lo sends her best.

**Brian and Julie - my boss and my boss; my brother and my sister; my friend and my friend. I have worked with each of you for more than 10 years now and I hope for 100 more. Thank you for supporting me through everything I have been through. Nothing needs specific mentioning as we know what "everything" is. Thank you for offering me a chance to make a living doing everything I love doing; while doing it side by side two of my best friends.

I was sitting at "the home" enjoying alittle geriatric gathering last Thursday (me and my two grandmothers and great aunt aged 92, 89, 85-ish) when Mabel asked me how I was doing. My response, which was the same thing I said to my Grandma Miller earlier in the day, was "I am healthy. I have a roof over my head. I have friends and family that care for me and a job (or two or three) that I love to keep me slightly in the black." I've always been a pretty happy-go-lucky girl...I am very, very thankful for everyone who plays a role in my so-called-life :)