Today at work I agreed with two opposing thoughts:

1. Your twenties are the best times of your life. Enjoy them — they go by fast. (They do. Oh, they do.)
2. The best time of your life is now. The past is over and if you think it’s all downhill from here — well, it will be. But it’s not. Enjoy what you have now.

No, I am not typically indecisive…at least I don’t think so.

Yeah, my twenties sure were fun. I won’t elaborate here. But trust me, I had fun. Once I woke up in a ravine with about six of my friends. The fire went out and we fell asleep…Oh wait, that was in my teens. (I am kidding, it was someone’s backyard — I think. I forget now.)

But yeah, the best is now and yet to come. I still like to have fun — maybe not go to a club to hear your friend’s band, then go to an after hours club and finally end up at Fran’s for breakfast kinda fun — but mid-forties kinda fun.

Mid-forties fun is traveling to cool cities without having to sleep 4 — or even six one time — to a room. It’s dining out — fancy food or burgers both are good — but not hanging out at the food court or Kelsey’s. It’s being comfortable in your own skin and enjoying your friends and not having to deal with mean girls. It’s (if you’re into that kinda thing) romance and candlelight dinners without worrying about your hair or if you look fat in your new jeans….oh wait, that doesn’t actually stop. It’s about choosing to be happy with what you’ve been handed. It’s also about not accepting the junk that can get handed to you — yours or other people’s.

It’s all good. And I think it’s gonna get even better.

Last week I went out for dinner and play with my friend L. I’ve known her since the first day of university. (She seemed fun and indeed she was and is. Perhaps one day I’ll write about the adventures of our school years.)

Last weekend I went to New York with my friend J. and we were trying to figure out how long we’ve known each other. About 20 years. And I knew her sister C. about a year before that. Our gang has known each other that long, too. And book club — I think — is now going on over 10 years.

In fact, I’ve know most of my friends for a long, long time. (And we can still stand each other it would seem.) Several of my colleagues and I have been saying good morning to each other for 13 years. We all still seem pretty happy about it, too. A new colleague said we were like a family — and yeah, I guess we are.

My dear friend P. has been an important part of my life since I was 22 years old and we still get together all the time. We never run out of things to talk about. We sometimes marvel at how time has flown but there are also plenty of fun times ahead.

I’ve made lots of new friends recently, too. (Recently in my case can be 10 years ago! But I also mean recently in the more commonly used fashion.)

Yeah, I guess I am feeling a bit nostalgic today but I’m also feeling pretty damn lucky.

Lucky for lots of reasons. And all of them to do with people. Not that I wouldn’t mind being wealthy in other ways, too. But I have enough. More than enough in all the ways that matter.

Thanks, people. All of you who are my friends. (No, my birthday is not coming up, there’s still time to shop :))