About 3 years ago, I met a woman in a chat room.  Over time, a group of friends emerged and I learned more about them as we laughed and joked and entertained each other.  On a business trip to San Diego, I agreed to meet this crazy woman... and the friendship entered a new dimension.  People talk about finding a soul mate, but rarely mention finding a "twin". 

Sherri and I met at the Elephant Bar that night and laughed the evening away.  A group of people actually came to our table to find out just why we were having so much fun.  We learned that our lives have been very similar... both the good and the bad.  

One twin is tall... the other is petite.  One is blonde... the other a redhead.  One lives in northern California... the other in southern CA.  One has green eyes... the other has blue.  We may not look like twins, but our brains and hearts came from the same place.  

In the 3 years since those chat room days, we've become the best of friends.  Not a day goes by that we don't call or chat or see each other.  She isn't like a sister to me...  she's like a part of me.  It's great to call her and say "we have to do this"... and off we go to another jazz festival.  Another time, it might be a quick trip to Mexico or a week in Las Vegas.  You might find us at The Del Coronado or at a benefit in Sacramento.

We've certainly had some adventures... like checking into a hotel to find a man's things in our room.  That could quickly become our favorite hotel!  Such amenities!  No matter where we go or what we do, we always have a great time... and people remember us.  (Is that a good thing????)

One of the greatest features of the "twinship" is that two heads are always better than one at solving problems or staying sane or using common sense.  We share a virtual 2x4 and we've been known to use it on each other any time good sense starts to slip.

Taking an important call in Avalon

The Twins meet Slim Man in Stockton

The two of us have been alone together for a long time, and I can't say it's the perfect life, but I wouldn't change a minute of it.  At the ripe old age of 15, we still do so many things together, and when we aren't fighting the normal parent/teen battles, we have a really great time.  We travel together and enjoy so many of the same things... museums and galleries, computers and (very different) music.  

To describe my son, I would say he has a very good heart... and a sense of humor that knocks me off balance sometimes... and he suffers from very-bright-but-lazy syndrome.  His room is a disaster, but I close the door and walk away.  He's adopted my "twin" as a second mother and it drives him crazy when his "Mom?" gets two replies in unison.

His interests include girls (one in particular, tho she's in southern California), computers, Nintendo, and playing Dungeons & Dragons.  I may never understand that game, but he enjoys it, and that's the important thing.  

He hates to hear it, but he's terribly bright... and he has so much potential.  I hope someday soon he'll realize it and go on to something great.  At the age of 4, he said he wanted to be a paleontologist.  His preschool teachers stared at each other blankly when he announced this... and he went on to teach the entire daycare center about dinosaurs.  He's my little professor.  We've been thru sharks and whales, dinosaurs, dirigibles, the Titanic, Jurassic Park, Star Wars...  living them, breathing them, and learning everything possible about each of them.  

We share a love for animals as well.  We've had a dog, 7 cats, hermit crabs, a hamster, lizards, toads, and an iguana, fish (including a goldfish that lived for 7 years)...  and he raised rats for a while.  Rats are bad enough, but "hairless rats" are  a pretty pitiful excuse for pets.  "Bob" is our only pet now, but she's a great cat...  tucking us in at night and never playing favorites.  Yes...  "Bob" is a girl...  bobcat?  Life is easier with fewer mouths to feed now.

I'm already concerned about an empty nest in a few years...  wondering how I can ever fill the void left by someone with such a large presence.

You know that brain is doing something... 

but what???

Hamming it up at Universal Studios

"Bobcat"