A very close friend of mine celebrated her birthday this week. Because I have been sick and busy, I have only had time to send her a measly YM (Yahoo Messenger) and a short note via email that I am still hoping she received and was able to read in time.

Thinking about her birthday made me recall how time has passed and realized that we have been friends for 9 years. I can say that definitely because our friendship can be referenced on how long I have been with my present company. I met her there you see.

And so to make up for being a lousy friend, I am writing this post especially for Gette. I want to highlight the little quirks about her that I so love and events in our lives that have become “classic” to us.

• She is the purple one in our group. I am pink and our other friend, Jade is blue. This becomes obvious everytime we go out shopping. You would see how these colors would define the things we buy. Like the purple lounge chair that we saw at Fry’s grocery that she just had to have. Although, our apartment really did not have the space for it, nor did her parent’s house but that did not stop her from buying it nonetheless.
• She loves coffee like the rest of us but she was always the one who we found preparing it for us every morning during out stint at Phoenix, AZ.
• She also loves to clean out the refrigerator. And when I say clean out, I don’t mean eating all the food in it.. well maybe some. She actually makes sure that the fridge is free of old dishes that have been pushed towards the back of all the other stuff. The downside though is that she tastes everything before deciding to throw it out. And then she complains that she is getting fat. LOL.
• I can remember how she was the only one who had the guts to eat the chicken curry that was cooked by Jade’s hubby. Imagine… chicken boiled with water and lots of curry powder.
• She is the one with the toughest exterior but meows like a kitty when on the phone with the one she loves. Remember sitting on the floor beside the night table at the corner of my room?
• I learned to use makeup because of her. She would tell me to try the Clinique counter makeovers that they offer in department stores like Macy’s to get the best tips on makeup. I love how she can wear mascara everyday and I can’t. I find it hard to because of my contact lens. Then I realized she also wears contacts.
• She was the one who told me how to use your own saliva when your contacts dry out and you don’t have a lubricant handy. Just make sure you didn’t eat anything with peanuts before licking your contacts wet - YIKES!
• She is the one friend who cares enough about me to tell me to snap out of my misery (when I am wallowing in it).

We have been friends for a long time. She has also since then married and lived in Michigan with her husband. I saw her last when she went back to the Philippines when her dad died in March.

And even though we have not seen each other in years, it was as if time had not passed when we met each other again. That’s how we are. That’s how she is.

So Gette here’s to you and our friendship.  I will always be here for you. I love you friend!