I think it's really cool that Julia and I are such great friends. In a way, I would hardly expect it. In the past year and some, I've begun to notice just how different we are, and in some pretty vital ways.

Julia, to begin with, is a full-fledged life vegetarian. Sure, that doesn't mean much, b/c we can all be friends w/vegetarians, but she is an extremist in my opinion. She cooks with flaxen seeds, tofu, and all kinds of other strange things which I have neither half heard of or ever eaten. She makes interesting and colorful meals out of foods that I'm pretty sure would never pass through our front door. Her kids actually eat salads and veggies w/o having to hide them under loads of dressing and cheese! She only eats fresh veggies, too, none of the canned stuff. She even uses soy milk instead of regular milk (which I'm sure other non-vegetarians do, but it helps to prove my point). And speaking of cooking, she does. Every night, for the most part. Real meals. She makes sure her husband has dinner ready when he gets home from work.

So, let's move to me now. I am the exact opposite of a vegetarian. I crave hamburgers and steaks. I like the donuts w/beef lard, and jello made with horse bones. I cook with hot dogs, chicken and barbeque sauce (when I do!). I don't use the oven if I can avoid it (Julia does, of course), and if it doesn't cook in a Foreman Grill, it doesn't get cooked. We go fancy with chicken nuggets and mac and cheese (w/green beans straight from a can, of course, we need veggies!). You have heard of everything we eat, and you've probably been warned either not to eat it, or to eat it sparingly. I have taught her kids of the joy and wonder of Pop-Tarts, which they think of as a treat, whereas my kids think of them as a snack! We drink real milk, filled with those nasty hormones, and make sure there's some kind of flavoring mixed in for extra added goodness (read: more sugar). I cook sparingly, and as you saw, it must include my Foreman grill, or we probably won't get any food. We eat real meals when Trey brings them home from work for us. Speaking of Trey getting home from work, there is never a meal waiting for him when he gets here. Both of our hubbies love us, though, so that's good.

Then there's the raising kids thing. She is pretty protective of her kids. Not crazy about it or anything, but when they cry, she responds. Now that they're older, she's slacked off a little, but when they were little, whoo! I, on the other hand, am not. If it's not the "I've fallen from a ten story building and my whole entire body is broken" cry, I tend to ignore it until it's at least been going on for a few minutes. Julia runs to check immediately (my kids, even!). My kids are monkeys, and tend to fly off of anything and everything, and are just just broken bones waiting to happen. Her kids are sedate and sweet, never thinking of jumping on or off of things. I'm sure she didn't condone that when they were little. TJ likes to wrestle, too. He wrestles with Andrew whenever possible. She doesn't like it. Trey taught TJ. Her kids are only allowed to watch tv and play video games a certain amount of time each day. My tv is ALWAYS on, as background noise, and the kids have tv's in their rooms, complete w/DVD players and cable. Julia doesn't even have cable. She lets her kids make their own decisions about a lot of stuff. I tend to make them for my kids, and pull the "I'm the momma and that's that," card. I'm very sure that when I start homeschooling my own children, we will use very different approaches. What we do have in common, though, is our total and complete love for our children, and our need to do what's absolutely best for them at all times.

When it comes to politics and all that stuff you don't speak of in mixed company, Julia and I are vastly different. I think we're both on the Republican side, although I tend to be more Libertarian. I don't know about her. I do know that we were raised in drastically different homes, and those differences really show in our beliefs and thoughts about the world. Julia is way more open-minded than I am. I don't hate people, but I don't like a lot of them. I tend to stereotype certain groups (although I'm open to believing there are exceptions to said stereotypes), while Julia takes everyone at face value. We both believe in God, but I'm much more laid back. Actually, I think that she is not sure yet how she feels...but I have a pretty set belief system there. There's plenty more, but that's all I can think of right now.

Anyway, I think it's funny that two such different people are such good friends. You would think that we would spend our time arguing and bickering about everything. Not the case, though. Sure, I'm sure that Julia thinks I'm a fruit loop about a lot of stuff I do, and I think she's whacked at times. Sometimes I tell her, sometimes she tells me. I never get mad, though. I just can't be mad at her, there's no reason to. Of all the people I've ever known in the world, I've never wanted to do something that will spite or intentionally upset Julia (trust me, I have wanted to piss off other people, though!). I know that when she says something, she's being honest for my own good. What's great, though, is that she does it in a way that she doesn't hurt my feelings in the process, so I know she'd rather not say it if it didn't need to be said. When we talk on the phone, I'm always instantly cheered up, and in person it's even better. Even when we don't do anything but sit around and chat, I have fun with her. We can be polar opposites and still get along. I think it's great. How many people can say that they disagree with a lot of stuff their best friend believes, and yet still never fight and get along so well? I am truly a lucky gal.

Oh, and by the way, Julia's birthday was this past Friday, which I forgot to mention. She's the big ol' 29 now. She's so old!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JULIA!!!