Lil' Lisa

We had Lisa's going away bash last Friday night at Vino's. My work girls (especially Lisa) LOVE karaoke....well truthfully I think all girls (especially when drinking) LOVE karaoke. It's just fun to get up there and belt it out - even though I don't think any of us actually have musical talent! Lisa has worked at HH (well SSS) for 17 years and is leaving our office and moving to Austin with her boyfriend Jon. Jon also works for our company and recently took a position at our Austin facility so Lisa is taking the plunge and moving with him! It was a scary step but I am so proud of her for doing it. We always joke that we don't know what life is like out of these office walls. She has been preparing for this move for a long time and gave a four month notice! She stayed at our unit to help finish out a few projects because that is just the kind of person she is - the definition of dedicated! Jon moved to Austin in November so poor Lisa has been sleeping on her brother's futon for months. It's been a LONG four months and I am so happy that she is finally able to get down there and start this new adventure. It is really, really sad for me. I have put on a brave face and smiled all the way through it; but I hate for her to leave. She is my work bff. She has been here since the day I started 12 years ago and we just instantly clicked! We are diet buddies, gossipers, spirit leaders and I think we keep each other in check like no one else can at the office! So opposite, yet so the same! When I first started, there was a big group of us that would go to lunch together everyday. Slowly one by one everyone either left to pursue other things or were laid off - Lisa and I were the only ones left in this building of that group. Now that she is gone it's like the dying era is really dead. :( Twelve years is a LONG time. We have been through a lot together in our work life and our personal lives. She has been a part of my whole adult life. We've tried every diet in existence, we've held weight loss contests, we've constructed a work out area in an empty office, we've done 5k's and the 3-day together, we've weighed and measured ourselves for years in her office. She brought the scale over to my office last week and I just lost it. It makes me sad everyday when I walk in and see it. I know that might sound silly but it is seriously this HUGE part of my work life. The other thing that I used to love about our office was our spirit committee work and Lisa was such a leader for it. Every holiday party, every cook-out, every fundraiser, every charity event, every everything that needed to be celebrated at work was coordinated by Lisa. There was a whole group of people to help out, but she was the instigator! Now most of those folks are gone and I am left pretty spiritless. :( I know that we will still talk and road trip it to see each other but it's not the same. I've seen too many other friends leave so I know how hard it is to maintain friendships - work makes it easy cause it's just built into your day. I will miss her dearly!