Feb.7/12

Greetings All,
   How is everyone this evening? I don't know where you are this evening, but it sure is cool here today in Red Deer. That wind was blowing at a decent rate and freezing my cherries off!! I was pondering what to write about tonight and I decided to just let it flow. So...Last night I was talking about how important of an influence Rick Rypien was to me in the last 6-8 months. When I look back on people in my life who were of help to me during the last 6+ years, a few friends really come to mind. Of course, Krystle was and has always been there for me. But there are 3 other people who are really important to me and who have helped me out through all of this. I think that is one of the most important things to have when dealing with a mental illness and that is, having a good support group or set of friends. These three guys have been there for me since the beginning of all this. All three of them offer me different points of view, different thoughts or suggestions and different belief patterns.
   All three of them have been my friend for a long time now and I have a different relationship with each of them. I think that the common thread between all three of them is our sense or senses of humor. The jokes that I share with one can easily be shared with another and another. My friend Doug, is like my brother. He and I grew up together but apart. He is from Prince Albert so we were 90kms away from each other. He has always been there for me when dealing with the bad days. Now granted, he has a wife and a brand new baby, so he is run pretty thin. And he doesn't always get to take my call as he has to work also. But, he has always propped me up and has done his best to nudge me in the right direction.
   Gerry is the friend who I have known the least amount of time, but he is also a really important part in my life and has also been there since the beginning. Gerry calls me a lot of the times to see how I am doing. Especially last year when everything was in the crapper, Gerry always takes the time to see how I/we are doing. Of course, Gerry lives in BC on the island, so needless to say, we haven't gotten to have any time together. But I always look forward to our talks and his advice that he may or may not have for me. Oh yah, I am the Skipper because I am really skinny and he is Gilligan because he is roly-poly. Or is it the other way around? I cannot remember. lol.
   My other friend has known me for a really long time also. His name is Arlen. I think that in some ways, my conversations with Arlen are really special to me because he has been in the same boat as me. Its not my place to tell you all about Arlen and what he deals with, but he definitely knows where I am coming from. We get to share "war stories" on things we have done to combat what ails us. Of course as I stated a few paragraphs ago, each one brings something special to the table for me. One is not more important than the other. They are all great in their own ways and I appreciate that. I also have a few other friends who are important to me and let me whine and moan about my sickness. My friend Pat is an old co-worker who knows all about what I have or am going through. Pat always lends an ear to me and encourages me to do my best. He has also commended me on my blog. My friend Brian is another old co-worker who is also there for me. Again, not my place to say what Brian goes through, but he too has a very good grasp on what goes on for me.
   I think that the point of tonight's blog is; whether or not you suffer from a mental illness, it is very important to have a core group of friends that you can lean on at different times in your life. We all need friends and family. If it is a family member that is your friend, great. As long as you have a least one good friend. I mean, the more the merrier, but one will do. As the song says; "Lean on me, when you're not strong. And I'll be your friend, I'll help you carry on..."