Rick Minerd - Life Is A Jukebox

From time to time I bump into people I used to know, people who I used to think I would always know. But life doesn't work out that way. I've only stayed in contact with a few of my  "close friends"  from my earlier life, and none from my childhood.

I've always heard that the best friends you will ever have are those from your school age years, but it hasn't been the case for me. Most of the guys I used to think of as  "best friends"  have moved on, as have I .

Most of my friends in my adult life fit the category of colleagues more than the more personal term, friends. But that's okay.

I don't get much more out of class reunions than I do family reunions. Usually social get-together's with people you think you care about, or who you once did, who apologize to each other for not staying in touch and promise to fix that negligence in the future.

And then you might see them again at the next get together.

When I was ten years old my best friend was Shane Sheaf. Shane lived three doors down and from about 1960 to 1964 we were like brothers. But something weird happened. We became teenagers. Our worlds expanded  beyond Kossuth Street and we both met new friends. And eventually we drifted into new circles, grew up, got married and lost touch with each other.

My next best friend was Dan Sauer. Dan lived a few blocks away and like Shane and I we became like brothers. We did everything together all through Junior and Senior High School. Then went our separate ways.

The list of best friends continued to grow as I went off into the wild blue professional world, and each time I changed jobs I lost friends and gained new ones. Today my best friend is DJ.  "D" as I call her is several years younger than me but accepts my laid back life-style,  never pressures me for anything and allows me to pretty much do or say whatever I choose without any admonishments.

And unlike previous best friends I'm certain she will hang around longer than any of them ever have. I hope she never leaves. It is my sincerest hope that she outlives me and when I am gone will have nothing but fond memories of our relationship.  DJ is special. She is the dog you wait for your whole life.

I've had several great dogs through the years and all of them were special.

There's just something about this American Bulldog that can't be explained in a simple blog.  She is truly much more than the cliche' "man's best friend."

But back to the other friends who stand upright on two legs. I've recently reconnected with Shane and we have plans to get together at least once more before we move on to new adventures. I'm looking forward to a date to attend a classic car show later in the summer with him.

Maybe then we can hash over old times. Find out what each other has been up to for the past 40 years. Maybe he has a dog. And like many of my older "friends" who share photos of their grand children, maybe Shane and I can look at photo's of each others  K-9's and discuss the reasons our pets turned out to be our best friends. And maybe I can learn something about  the reasons we stopped knowing each other.  Rick

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