Co-Pilot.

I’m in a bit of a sentimental mood today. Work is going along as expected. My desk was not as cluttered as I thought it would be when I arrived, so that was a sigh of relief. I breezed through the 650+ e-mail messages that were waiting for me; it’s easy to do when you keep your finger on the “DELETE” key.

The reason I’m sentimental today is because I have a little bit of an empty feeling lurking about. You see, for the past 16 days or so, Earl and I have been together 24 hours a day, seven days a week. On our vacation we did everything together. We laughed, we cried, we giggled, we whispered, we shouted. We didn’t fight, except for one pissy moment I had because his Blackberry kept going off in Central Iowa. And we got through that before lunch.

It’s kind of weird when you’ve been sailing through life hand in hand non-stop and then you have to go to work and do your own thing for a little bit each day. Naturally it has to be done, and many people thrive in the opportunity, but I’m not wired that way. I came from a family that worked together and that played together. My dad works with his sister and brother, who worked for their mother and father, who all owned a business together. And a farm. And we still got together at our grandparents’ house every Sunday morning for coffee and donuts. I’ve mentioned before that I’m a bit of a loner. And Earl’s presence doesn’t intrude on my solitude, he’s part of it. He’s part of me.

So even though it’s been a little over 10 years and we’ll be forging through the household chores together tonight, I’m a little sentimental today. I have a bit of a lump in my throat. I miss my friend. I can’t wait to give him a really big hug when I walk in the door tonight.