Matt Dobek - What if You had a Second Chance?
by Big Z in Orlando on Aug 30, 2010 3:34 PM EDT
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While browsing the FREEP today, I stumbled across a story by Michael Rosenberg about recently deceased former Piston's PR Director, Matt Dobek. Matt Watson covered it previously with this post. What I didn't realize, and many may not have, is the Matt Dobek took his own life.
While I felt the article was well written and poignant, the comments section at the FREEP quickly devolved into a discussion about whether his depression was caused by his firing, or vice versa, or what a jerk move it was for him to be fired by KD, or a bunch of stuff that I really didn't think had anything to do with why Rosenberg wrote the article.
To me, this article wasn't about the injustice of getting fired, or even the results of it. It wasn't about depression or if it came before or after the firing, or how to talk to someone with depression, or how to cure depression... none of that.
This article was about our relationships with people. Rosenberg wanted to thank Matt for being a good guy and helping him out. He never got the chance.
It got me thinking about my own life and not taking people around me for granted. Parents, spouses, children, friends, co-workers, even casual acquaintances; make a point to thank these people for the parts they play or have played in your life.
We don't typically know what's going on in the lives of people around us; people we see every day. But if you have something positive to say to someone, don't wait. Life pulls us away from each other in strange and unpredictable ways. Don't wait until it is too late to share how you feel with the people you care about, or to thank those that deserve it.
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I'll salute to that
and I’m muslim
"Don’t really know shit about White other than he is a colon of Stuckey" - das SmittyJ
And here I thought I knew White like the palm of my hand
by bearded thundar on Aug 30, 2010 5:35 PM EDT up reply actions
at least in Persia they don't
"Don’t really know shit about White other than he is a colon of Stuckey" - das SmittyJ
And here I thought I knew White like the palm of my hand
by bearded thundar on Aug 30, 2010 8:57 PM EDT up reply actions
Many recs Big Z, and much love to Dobek's friends and family
I had no idea this is what happened…
So terrible. If there’s any human condition that is grossly misunderstood, stigmatized, under-diagnosed and improperly treated— it’s depression.
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part of the problem is because it's quite difficult to diagnose
There’s a difference between being a whiny bitch and being truly depressed, however those lines often intersect, not to mention depression has various levels of depth. Someone could just be having a rough year, but not be clinically depressed, whereas someone else may look fine but could be depressed simply because they are better at hiding their emotions.
You can never underestimate the ego factor either. Many people are scared to seek help even if they have a gut feeling they are facing some form of depression due to the “stigma” of talking to a professional.
"Don’t really know shit about White other than he is a colon of Stuckey" - das SmittyJ
And here I thought I knew White like the palm of my hand
by bearded thundar on Aug 30, 2010 7:25 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
A brief "Me Going Off On A Tangent Post"
You’re speaking the truth with that last sentence. Depression is not fucking Heroes getting canceled and you being in a bad mood. People who say they are depressed, often times, are going one of a few ways:
-Whiny, overdramatic bitches
- People who don’t know what real depression is
- People who need help and are reaching out
Of course, these are very general, but that’s the way it seems they go. Because of the first two groups, the third group isn’t taken very seriously sometimes. So the response to, “I’m depressed,” is “Quit whining” or some other thing. Few people really want to talk about it, but its there.
The thing is that I’m probably bitter because I’m predisposed to that way (I’m dysthmic, which is basically being mildly depressed most of the time, which can spiral out of control out for a few days or even go into major if circumstances are bad enough) and emo music and preteen girls and preteen boys who want to get the lyrics to The Smiths “Unlovable” tattooed on their thighs make something super serious look like a joke.
Depression is just hard to deal with, so people who are a little over the top are probably just trying to deal with it. I personally wouldn’t turn down anybody who said, “I’m depressed,” because you never know. Depression, however, doesn’t give you free reign to be an asshole.
by Biz Markie Moon on Aug 30, 2010 8:29 PM EDT up reply actions
My (least) favorite is the phrase “I’m feeling a little depressed.” It seems as inappropriate as if someone were to say “I’m feeling a little caucasian.” I’m bipolar and people throw that around so much you’d think there would be an emoticon for it.
I went to the hospital after a manic episode and discovered my diagnosis, same as my father, and decided to try to change the way people think about it. I tried to bring up the fact that I had Bipolar whenever anyone was speaking about the disease, or using it as a perjorative. I found that half the people would be able to connect with me on some level. They had a uncle, or a boyfriend, or they themselves were battling some form of mental illness. A quarter of people would respond in disbelief, and a sad group of people would look through me as if they just discovered that I was less than human.
Unfortunately, the fear of my future boss and coworkers falling into the latter category made me stop being so bold after college (my dad told me some of his stories that helped me make this decision). I do think that the more people talk about the different types of mental illness the better the rest of the world will be about the people who are affected by them. I imagine one of the worst things that Matt Dobek or anyone with a mental illness has to deal with is the paranoia and loneliness involved in making sure that no one else suspects they have a mental illness.
Sorry to hear about your manic episode
It does take balls to be so bold, so you do have balls.
I’ve felt the same way too. I’ve hid the fact that I was going to a therapist from most of my best friends because high school kids just don’t go to shrinks. Its not what you do. Also, morons like those assholes from Sum 41 pretty much defining depression as :( definitely doesn’t help matters. We aren’t that far off from bashing Spiro Agnew as “crazy” for being depressed. In my worldview, Sum 41 and Fall Out Boy and all that horseshit is really not that far off from minstrel; the amount of makeup they were is just concentrated in one area as opposed to all over.
Ironically, I hit rock bottom the last time the Pistons made the playoffs. This year, I was pretty happy and they sucked. Correlation?
It’s probably just the Jonas talking though.
by Biz Markie Moon on Aug 30, 2010 9:50 PM EDT up reply actions
Thanks man, I rarely get that, I appreciate it. Usually I get disbelief and shock, but rarely sympathy. Thanks.
Minstrel is a good word for all that. No sense paying attention to that stuff, those guys have to go on stage and sound like they are in the worst of the moods and go out and party with models and otherwise have the time of their life. The people to pay attention to or look to as examples are sadly all hidden because they don’t want to step out and face the negative effects of mental illness stigma.
The first trip to the Easter conference finals was right after I came out the hospital, I never really thought about how cool it was to go to those games.
Fellas
No homo, but my heart goes way the hell out to you. My best friend was mis-diagnosed after dealing with some personal and health issues, then told to go on an anti-depressant to help “balance things out”. That was a death knell, the worst possible thing that could happen, and every hour of every day for the last two years has been a struggle. I wake up every day wondering, is this the day that my best friend gives up? I have fought to at least try and be a rock to make things better, but I’ve fucking sobbed at the moments when I feel powerless to help.
The only thing I hate worst than depression, when it comes to human health, is the demon drugs that are prescribed to fight against it. Sure, they work well for many people, but when some SNRI’s come with “rare” (bullshit) side effects like crippling depression, suicidal ideation, a drive for substance abuse and withdrawal symptoms worse than heroin… kind of fucking defeats the purpose, no?
Tads, Biz Markie Moon, you should be proud as hell to talk so bravely about what you’ve been through. I’ve seen with my own two eyes (and I’d give just about anything to carry the burden for my friend) how crippling this can be. And the stigma and those who capitalize on it need to end. So does the FDA for allowing Big Pharma muscle to peddle the worst kind of drugs into the hearts of those who hurt the most.
I’ve gotten pretty good at talking through this kind of pain with friends. I am not a fool to say I “understand”, but I give my hardest to at least try. I know this is a basketball blog and all, but the community here is about a hell of a lot more than that. If shit gets rough, email a brother?
witty signature
by Mike Payne on Aug 30, 2010 10:27 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
I'm not going to lie
I take Wellbutrin, and it does work FOR me. Those first two weeks of getting on it, though? Rough shit. I was in absolute shambles. But I did make it through. Honestly, if I had to, I could go without it, but it did stabilize my life at the time.
Now Paxil? That shit is fucking evil. I won’t be convinced otherwise. Any drug that makes preteens suicidal can go fuck itself, period. And I used to take it, so I know.
I’m sorry to hear about your best friend. And I’ll say another thing: the community here kicks some ass for a fairly big blog. Very close knit, very informative, and funny as hell. I think it helps that there are few Detroit Pistons bandwagon ass cats, so the people here are die hards.
by Biz Markie Moon on Aug 30, 2010 10:56 PM EDT up reply actions
I’m with you a thousand percent man, shit here is top notch. I’ve met some really excellent people here, all except for Skylar. He’s the bad guy in all those 80s coming of age movies!
I’m with you on Paxil. Basically, my friend is on Effexor, and Paxil is actually prescribed to people who are trying to come off of Effexor. Basically, if you don’t slowly, carefully take yourself off of Effexor, it can kill you, and you also risk permanent “discontinuation syndrome”— which means you will live with side effects for the rest of your life. The Paxil, even on a low dosage, gave him constant twitches which (thanks to the Effexor) remain to this day, five months later.
That’s the thing doctors don’t tell you. “hey, if you ever want to stop taking this drug, it might kill you :)”
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I’ve met some really excellent people here, all except for Skylar. He’s the bad guy in all those 80s coming of age movies!
The bad guy………………………with a heart of gold. Just give him a chance!
And kudos to the sentiment in this post and the general awesomeness of DBB in general.
by garrettelliott on Aug 30, 2010 11:24 PM EDT up reply actions
Skylar is one bad dude
He’s gruff with a nougaty center. Or rather, surly.
by Biz Markie Moon on Aug 30, 2010 11:37 PM EDT up reply actions
If DBB is a high school coming of age movie, is Boney Wooderson?
Anyway, I’ve never heard of Effexor, but that sounds like a horrible prescription drug.
Yeah, I’ve had a problem with the prescription drug companies for years, but I don’t really have proof of anything. Why market a drug like that?
by Biz Markie Moon on Aug 30, 2010 11:34 PM EDT up reply actions
Effexor works a lot like Wellbutrin, but works on more brain chemicals than just Norepinephrine. Like common anti-depressants like Paxil, Prozac, etc, Effexor also works on Serotonin. SNRIs like Effexor work on both brain chemicals, to the point where your brain is so reliant on it that if you miss a dose your world is turned all the way the fuck upside down and the hell side effects come out.
Funny thing is, Effexor isn’t an “extreme” anti-depressant, it’s prescribed to people with mild depression, bi-polar tendencies, some muscle issues, etc.
That whole “miss a dose” thing— when you try and come off of it, it takes your brain months to re-adjust. People report getting these constant “brain shocks” that feel like lightning in your brain for the weeks after you stop taking it. Sounds like a fucking blast to me.
end rant…
Oh, and for my money, Boney is more of a Chet Donnelly.
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Oh, okay
Yeah, that seems to make you way too dependent on it. Bad stuff. And of course, doctors probably don’t know shit about it.
by Biz Markie Moon on Aug 31, 2010 12:07 AM EDT up reply actions
I also take Wellbutrin. With several years of therapy and the support of family, I’ve luckily gotten the point where I only have to take it on an “as needed” basis. Right now I’m looking for a new job, studying for the GRE, looking into graduate schools, and trying to figure out what I want to do for the rest of my life. So, Wellbutrin is coming in handy.
I tried Lexapro a few years back and that messed me up, bad. Unfortunately, mental illness is very hard to treat even if you find the right pills. Therapy helps, a lot. I can’t recommend it enough. Heck, even if you don’t have any mental health issues, you can still benefit from a few sessions of introspection.
Therapy is absolutely needed. Therapists are not going to judge you. They have to make a buck too. And they’ve had years of not being a cock to strangers training. I was stubborn as hell but at least I had somebody to listen to me and figure out what I needed. And finally something started clicking and I felt better. Of course, at that time, I was running out of sessions; I really only had two left before I had to pay for them out of pocket.
by Biz Markie Moon on Aug 30, 2010 11:40 PM EDT up reply actions
Thanks for all the respect guys. As far as medicine goes it’s kind of a double edge sword. I don’t know about depression but they really didn’t have medicine for bipolar until the seventies. When my dad had an episode when he was in his twenties it was 3 of the most productive years of his life spent between the hospital and his parents couch. When I had mine I was out of the hospital in like a week thanks to some crazy stuff that I couldn’t even google at the time because it was new.
Now I take my lithium daily and it SUCKED at the beginning, but I stuck with it because I knew the first few months are always the worst. My doctors have always tried to push more stuff on me (Stratera for ADD, Klonopin or Xanax so you can Sleep, drop lithium altogether for Depakote, Tegratol and whatever else! sp?), it seems the new model for mental illness is prescribing some kind of “cocktail”. I sort of new what I wanted though because I had read An Unquiet Mind, a book about a psychiatric researcher who finds out she has bipolar, and my mom joined a support group and grabbed me to a couple of their meetings. I don’t know what to say for your friend, Mike, a lot of these periods with horrible medication side effects are required to find the right mix, but the fact that medication has become less of a product of science and more of a commodity the buyer needs to beware. EIther way, at least it’s not like 30 or 40 years ago where your friend would be battling to get out of a mental institution.
Rec'd For Telling It Like It Is
I come from a different age. As you might have figured out from some of my postings, I don’t fit so well with mainstream organized society, either. But I’m not going to ingest a bunch of chemicals daily to do so. I just go through life the old school way, dealing with problems, and keep moving forward.
At some point in time you have to learn to love yourself. Because if you don’t, the rest doesn’t really matter.
by V. on Sep 1, 2010 11:45 PM EDT up reply actions
But I’m not going to ingest a bunch of chemicals daily to do so. I just go through life the old school way, dealing with problems, and keep moving forward.
At some point in time you have to learn to love yourself. Because if you don’t, the rest doesn’t really matter.
Mad respect, V, but the really sad thing is that some people are entirely incapable of doing that due to the way they’re wired. If a tough skin and a strong conviction were all it could take to weather bad depression, I think suicide would be rare— if not erased. No amount of positive thinking or individual strength can beat serious depression alone. Having seen it from the outside, in one of the strongest people I know, it’s like trying to balance a bowling ball on a toothpick. Learning to “love yourself” while doing that is like trying to juggle bowling balls on that same toothpick… at least from the perspective I’ve gained.
I’m not by any means saying “you’re wrong”, only to note that an increasing number of people in the world have to fight a war for the mental health that most of us can just grasp on our own— i.e. loving ourselves.
witty signature
Well...
It kind of begs the question…are we all chemically unbalanced by nature? I doubt it. Are we emotionally incapable of the speed of life and the handling of technology? I doubt that, too.
Don’t get me wrong, it took me a long time to find the answers, myself. And I get what the chemicals are about..my own experiences with E 10 years or so ago, I had unbelievable clarity and sense of focus (and loved everyone around me at the same time lol), and E is chemically similar to many of the drugs prescribed for those with heavy ADD. (Strong coffee actually repeats much of the same effects for me, amazingly enough).
But I think at the end of the day, one’s happiness or depression is a learned thing and not an innate one. Without trying to put anyone down, the Welbutrins, Adderalls, Zolofts, to my mind, just seem to anesthetize society more than really solve any individual’s depression, perceived or actual.
by V. on Sep 2, 2010 12:51 AM EDT up reply actions
But then...
If you are going to say we are all chemically unbalanced by nature, you have to assume that nature would create the levels of balance across a wide spectrum. It wouldn’t be like an on or off switch. Some people would be severely mentally imbalanced from birth to the point where it could seem a lofty goal to just be able to function in society (watch this for an example, though it is kind of unsettling). And then I imagine there are people some who are born solid as a rock. The rest of us all fit along the line somewhere.
Just like how everyone has some different form of vision and sometimes people will need various types of glasses or contacts, people with various mental states may or may not need various types of medication. It may be hard for people with 20/20 vision to understand what life is like to have glasses, so its understandable that you might have trouble understanding the role of various drugs like the Wellbutrins and the Adderalls. I just hope you understand that saying things like their depression is “perceived” is like taking off someone’s glasses and telling them to see clearly. Don’t think that people who take medication, like me, are stuck inside of a dull emotionless life, completely void of ups and downs. The people you may be thinking of who make society feel anesthetized may be fine tuning their proper dosage and adjusting to their medication. After the initial period, the medication is like an after thought. It’s similar to the seat belt you wear when you’re driving, if you head into trouble it keeps you from getting really badly hurt, but it won’t make your commute more enjoyable. It is by no means a “solution” to feelings of sadness and discomfort, but away to prevent people with a chemcial imbalance from letting those feelings spiral into something as tragic as the suicide that prompted this post.
The anesthetization of society in regard to mental illness may be discomforting, but it is preferable to seeing people filed away in mental instutions, burned at the stake for claims of witch craft or demon possessions, or discarded from society as a whole and left to fend for themselves.
actually we are
are we all chemically unbalanced by nature
look at brain scans, we are constantly fighting ourselves to reach some form of equilibrium. Puberty is the perfect example of a natural state of unbalance that everyone has to go through.
"Don’t really know shit about White other than he is a colon of Stuckey" - das SmittyJ
And here I thought I knew White like the palm of my hand
by bearded thundar on Sep 2, 2010 8:16 AM EDT up reply actions
But dude,
You’re the DBB underground knowledge center. You’re like our William S. Burroughs. On one hand, that means that you probably SHOULD ingest a ton of chemicals, but on the other hand, you’re also the baddest dude on this site so either way.
And I agree with your post, especially the last sentence. Its different for everybody.
by Biz Markie Moon on Sep 2, 2010 12:53 AM EDT up reply actions
Not the Baddest Dude, But Thanks...
For me, the title is a tossup between QD ,TJL and El Joel.
Recreational chemicals are okay, but so are cocktails. A margarita rocks, with Chinaco tequila (V. was drinking Patron in the early ‘90s before anyone heard of them), either the plato or the reserve, no salt, plenty of ice, works just as well as any controlled substance for me these days. You want to float the Patron Orange liqueur, that’s cool too.
by V. on Sep 2, 2010 1:18 AM EDT up reply actions
i only drink patron when i drink higher end tequila
i hate those fucking michael imperioli commercials for 1800.
i dont really drink high end tequila though, its usually pepe lopez or el toro.
I Can't Stand Bobby Flay...and I Hate The Strip
But Mesa Cafe at Caesars is where we drink Chinaco maggies. So, holla at me next time you’re in town…if I’m not back in LA full time yet.
by V. on Sep 3, 2010 2:11 AM EDT up reply actions
It Was Pretty Obvious To Me
You just had to read between the lines…no given cause of death, no known illnesses, “died suddenly”, etc…especially since the guy was a Pistons lifer. I’m actually a little surprised it didn’t come out sooner, but maybe the timing gives a sense of dignity to the process of grieving and all.
by V. on Sep 1, 2010 11:28 PM EDT up reply actions
The black dog
My hat goes off to Biz and tads and anyone else that has dealt with depression. It’s those that keep silent that suffer the most, admitting to yourself that you have depression is the hardest of all steps. I still find it really difficult to admit to anyone but my immediate family, the stigma associated with it is prevalent in society.
For the last few years even before I left the Army, I have battled the black dog.
My depression was related to a combination of many things I think, finding out my son had autism, guilt from not being around and post traumatic stress disorder being some of them according to my doctor. A lot of the time, there really isn’t one thing that you can put a finger on or identify, sometimes depression just is.
I did find Lexapro worked for me, perhaps all I needed was a boost to my Seratonin levels. I am off the drugs now, coping pretty well, but always mindful of the triggers for ‘episodes’. It takes guts to be the first to open up about this sort of thing to people, thanks again tads and biz for sharing.
I'm off to point the pink pistol at the porcelain firing range.
No problem dude
Again, my heart goes out to ANYBODY suffering from any mental illness. It could be my worst enemy and I’d have to have some sympathy.
by Biz Markie Moon on Aug 31, 2010 1:51 AM EDT up reply actions
Props to you guys for sharing
I wish you all well in dealing with it.
In my family mental illness is pretty common, and after seeing the struggles of past generations I have always been scared of having to deal with that myself. I think it takes a lot of strenght to face this and deal with this straight on, even more to be so open about it.
There is definitely a stigma around it, as if the person dealing with it its to blame, for lack of strenght or perspective or whatever shit people make up these days. Back in high school I recall an english teacher who had a number of mental illness. Going to school everyday was the only thing she had left in life, and yet students made it pretty damn impossible for her to teach. They would pull all sorts of stuff on her to trigger an episode or make her cry, it was “fun” apparently. It took too many years for the department of education to intervene and get her the help she needed.
Where in the world is Trent Plaisted?
As others have said, my heart goes out to you guys who are struggling with mental illness. Depression is incredibly misunderstood and stigmatized, as others have noted. I don’t intend this to sound condescending or anything, so please don’t take it that way — kudos to you guys for embracing treatment, therapy, friends, family, etc. That’s a difficult thing to do and takes a lot of courage.
Matt Dobek
Terrible news, my prayers go out for everyone battling depression out there.
by Detroitsportsfan3 on Aug 31, 2010 11:15 AM EDT reply actions
Thanks for the comments
Thanks for sounding off, guys. I didn’t mean for this to become a confessional, but if it helps some of you deal with your day-to-day struggles to share it with us, your DBB brethren (and sister), I’m all for it.
Although I tried to broaden the appeal of the point I was attempting to emphasize to include everyone, including those who thankfully don’t struggle with mental illness, I see I struck a cord with a few of our readers who have struggled with depression and other issues.
Although I’ve never been diagnosed with depression, it is prevalent in my family (sister, uncle, grandmother at least) and I wanted to emphasize a couple of points people already made above.
I think depression is made worse by the feeling that there must be “some reason” why it’s happening. Don’t misunderstand me; many who fall into depression are started on that path by some serious negative event or events in their lives (perhaps being fired from a long-time job in Matt Dobek’s case). But many are depressed and have no clue why they feel the way they do. Not understanding why you feel depressed, consciously knowing that you shouldn’t feel depressed, or not feeling you deserve to feel depressed only makes a bad situation worse. Depression is a mental illness, not a passing whim. There doesn’t have to be a reason, and struggling with yourself to understand why you feel the way you do is one of the toughest parts about it.
Also, I think much of the societal stigma that still exists about depression is somewhat connected to the idea that curing depression is simply a matter of “getting tough” and taking things into your own hands. Many feel that those with depression should simply “buck up”, or “start thinking more positive”, and that will solve the problem. If they don’t, they’re either unwilling to fix themselves, or they’re just wallowing in self-pity. Nothing could be further from the truth. Again, depression is a mental illness, and you can no more “fix yourself” than you can do surgery on yourself. People with clinical depression must seek professional help. It’s a big step and hard to take, but it is the first step to combating this debilitating disease.
I feel for MP, because having a loved one with depression can be extremely hard as well. We all want to help the ones we love, but in the end there really isn’t anything we can do other than letting them know how much we care about them and being there for them when they need someone for support. Of course, this is great advice for all our relationships, and that was the point that struck me while I was reading this story about Matt Dobek and this particular tragedy.
It’s probably naive and unrealistic, but I never want to feel the same regret that Rosenberg did after his column. I hope that I can tell those people around me how much I appreciate everything they do to make my life as sweet as it is and not take them for granted. A death is a tragedy, but living another 50 years (or however long I have left) wondering if someone I care about knows how I really feel about them is something I don’t ever want to worry about.
by Big Z in Orlando on Aug 31, 2010 3:05 PM EDT reply actions 5 recs
It’s probably naive and unrealistic, but I never want to feel the same regret that Rosenberg did after his column. I hope that I can tell those people around me how much I appreciate everything they do to make my life as sweet as it is and not take them for granted
+1. Say the words, brothers and sisters.
The saddest funeral I've ever attended
Was the funeral of my younger cousin’s best friend. He left no warning leading up to his suicide. Everything seemed to be fine. He had no health problems I can remember. Freshly married. Had his own house. Had a decent job. My cousin was the best friend you possibly could have, those two grew up together, in neighboring houses. He had a whole family of brothers and sisters, and everyone loved him. It still doesn’t make any sense. When I found out he was dead, I assumed he was murdered. It was rough for me to observe. For his family, for his wife, and for my cousin, I could tell how painful it was for him, especially. I can’t completely imagine how hard it was for all of them, but I know that this kid must have been seriously messed up inside.
Good. Bad. I'm the guy with the gun.
I'm a bit late here.
I don’t know if I am depressed or not. I’ve had my fair share of experiences, and I often tell people that I’ve seen somethings that I hope they never have to see.
Personally I deal with my own sadness in two ways, which I’ll provide some insight into my life to make my point.
Probably the last year and a half to two years have been the worst of my life. I’ve lost a good job, my grandmother died, my dad was diagnosed with throat cancer this summer, and I have this never ending thought in my head that I’m just a failure. That is my problems in a nutshell. Now I have two ways of dealing with my problems. My first way is similar to V’s in that I tell myself to toughen up and just keep fighting.
As bad as it has seemed to me, this past year has been the best of my life because I found something that helps me through my life, and that is friendship. Over the past year I’ve met two beautiful young ladies who do something for me that rarely ever happens, they make me smile.
I can never say enough about these two. The first lady is my coworker and her spirit is like none other. Where I’m a cynic, she’s an optimist. In many ways she’s my opposite, and in every way it’s just refreshing.
For those of you who may follow me on twitter or facebook, that beautiful lady resting her head on my shoulder in my profile pic is my best friend in the whole wide world. Not a day goes by where I don’t thank God for random facebook adds because without them my life would be incomplete. Nothing starts my day off better than a good morning text and my work day is always better when I get a surprise visit from her. They are little things but they are things that actually make me feel important to at least one person on this planet. Until I had met her, I didn’t really know what friendship was and my goal is to give her the same feeling of friendship that she gives me.
Really, they listen to me and that’s really all I need from them. If had to stress one thing to all of us it’s this: No matter how badly you don’t want to listen to someones sob story, sometimes it’s the difference. You may lose 5 minutes of your own life to it, but he or she may gain their entire life back. You just never know.
But if I had to put my finger on a third way that helps me cope with my problems, it’s laughter. And even though I love the Pistons, it’s the laughs that I get that keep me coming back to this place. You guys are probably the most entertaining bunch on the internet in my opinion and I love you guys for it.
yowza
Over the past year I’ve met two beautiful young ladies who do something for me that rarely ever happens…..
Thought you were going in a completely different direction with that one :)
Thanks for sharing. A good woman in your life can seem like God’s greatest gift. While a trifling-ass trick can make every day a living hell. Glad to see you’ve found some of the the former.
by Big Z in Orlando on Sep 13, 2010 3:58 PM EDT up reply actions
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