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Last week I hosted one of my friends for a week and we did as much autumn stuff as we could while she was here. This was a special visit because this friend is a fan friend I met 11 years ago through Setlock. She lives in Malmö, Sweden now, my old home town, though she is originally from Eastern Germany. She's more than a decade younger than me, but I have learned so much from her over the years. She also has a lot of travel anxiety, but a year ago, she made the decision to come visit me in autumn. And she overcame her fears to do just that.
She had spent a few years in the US and was set to live here permanently until things in her life upended and she returned to Germany. That was in 2009, so this visit was her first return since then and was also a way for her to revisit some of her fondest memories of her time in the US (in Connecticut and California).
The day after she arrived, we went to the Maryland Renaissance Festival and on our way home, we hit up Target!. The next day, we visited the cutest town in Maryland (Frederick) and then spent the afternoon taking photos, picking pumpkins and eating apple cider donuts at a nearby Pumpkin Patch. We did the Ghost meme (see below), and I loved how it turned out!
I am dealing with a lot of personal stress this semester. Some of this is due to overcommitting at work. Some of this is due to my trauma response to stress which I am trying to deal with through therapy now. In addition to insecurities and self-esteem issues deriving from the child sexual abuse, it's clear I'm also a very typical case of eldest daughter syndrome (God how I want to slap my parents for their fucking immaturity - if you cannot fucking parent your own children, don't outsource this work to your goddamn 8-9-10 year old daughter. And also don't have 4 fucking kids!).
So while having a houseguest for a week during the semester was also a stressor, it was also a really beautiful antidote to the stress of work. Friendships are so dear. Someday I will be forced to retire from my job/step away from my career due to health/age/politics. But none of that is relevant for friendships.
You are never to old to be a friend, and I remain so touched and happy that this wonderful woman I met through Sherlock fandom and got closer to over the years has remained a fixture in my life and put aside her travel anxiety to come visit me and chase autumn for a week. I have so many beautiful photos and memories.
She had spent a few years in the US and was set to live here permanently until things in her life upended and she returned to Germany. That was in 2009, so this visit was her first return since then and was also a way for her to revisit some of her fondest memories of her time in the US (in Connecticut and California).
The day after she arrived, we went to the Maryland Renaissance Festival and on our way home, we hit up Target!. The next day, we visited the cutest town in Maryland (Frederick) and then spent the afternoon taking photos, picking pumpkins and eating apple cider donuts at a nearby Pumpkin Patch. We did the Ghost meme (see below), and I loved how it turned out!
I am dealing with a lot of personal stress this semester. Some of this is due to overcommitting at work. Some of this is due to my trauma response to stress which I am trying to deal with through therapy now. In addition to insecurities and self-esteem issues deriving from the child sexual abuse, it's clear I'm also a very typical case of eldest daughter syndrome (God how I want to slap my parents for their fucking immaturity - if you cannot fucking parent your own children, don't outsource this work to your goddamn 8-9-10 year old daughter. And also don't have 4 fucking kids!).
So while having a houseguest for a week during the semester was also a stressor, it was also a really beautiful antidote to the stress of work. Friendships are so dear. Someday I will be forced to retire from my job/step away from my career due to health/age/politics. But none of that is relevant for friendships.
You are never to old to be a friend, and I remain so touched and happy that this wonderful woman I met through Sherlock fandom and got closer to over the years has remained a fixture in my life and put aside her travel anxiety to come visit me and chase autumn for a week. I have so many beautiful photos and memories.
