it's deb's birthday! deb has been my friend longer than anyone else in the world, aside from my immediate family. she is smart and funny and we share a love of good books and coffee. our sleepovers when we were little were made up of lots of quiet reading of horse books. (we also shared a love of horses, and had plans to start a ranch together.) deb introduced me to taylor, the best possible college for me, and to the boxcar children when i was little. (we WERE the boxcar children when we played in her creek!) she hiked the grand canyon this summer, and she and her husband moved to portland last year just because they wanted to. she's compassionate, articulate, and steady. she has a crazy job (teaching middle school special education students) and loves it. she's also very good at it. we cna go for months without speaking, and it's still like yesterday. she shares a family background that is probably more similar to mine than anyone else. she is my original kindred spirit. happy birthday, dear!