Local Support.
Sitting at a table with five other type 1 diabetic women, I ordered a cheeseburger for dinner.
What?! I didn't eat the bun! And it was downright delicious.
Last night, I had the distinct pleasure of meeting up with the local diabetic ladies of Fairfield County. Karen and Erin were there, as well as Julie, Rachel, and Judith. Six of us at a big, round table being waited on by the world's nicest waitress.
I was telling Chris - it was so cool and borderline surreal to hear six pumps beeping and six lancet devices shunking and six meters flashing results. One woman was both diabetic and the mother of a boy with diabetes. Another was 21 weeks pregnant. One was about to mark her 30th year with diabetes. Another was closing in on her second. We're an eclectic and diverse group of women with different backgrounds and desires and families and lives but there's this one huge thing that we all share - diabetes.
I really appreciate having this in-person kind of support. It stems from our interactions online, but putting faces and smiles and voices to these email addresses and blog posts really makes me appreciate what this community has become over time. It's so nice to hang with people who really understand - and who are so much more than their disease.
And this time we got ourselves some damn photographic evidence!
Thanks for coming out, ladies, and I'm looking forward to our next dinner! (I promise to stick to decaf. And I won't tell that stupid lip gloss story again. Or the potato one. Or mention the store down the street from dLife. I embarrass myself with surprising regularity.)
Are you interested in meeting up? Are you in Fairfleld County, CT? Email me at kerri (at) sixuntilme (dot) com and we'll add you to the email list!
EDIT: Is anyone from the Dallas, TX area? Someone out there is looking for a fellow diabetic to share stories with, so if you're in Dallas, email me so I can link you guys up!
Comments
:) I'm jealous!!! I live in a very very very small town and we have nothing like that. Real life support is fantastic I'm sure. Thanks for sharing :)
Posted by: Rachel | May 8, 2009 11:16 AM
LOL As always, it was so much fun. And yes, I did tell Pea about the store down the street. After all, he gets off right there . . . uuhhh, exits the train right there. ;) I was so ticked off that I forget my camera, yet again - but I'm glad you got evidence.
And do you remember me saying I would regret the ravioli? Yup, I paid with a 193 before bed. They were yummy though!
Thank you for making these dinners happen, and thank you to all of the other D-Ladies who make time in their busy schedules to attend.
Posted by: Karen | May 8, 2009 11:17 AM
It's the only sort of environment when blood-glucose-checking becomes a competitive sport (or is that a recreational activity)? Come to Ninjabetic's TokBox chats where we're all holding meters up to our webcams...
Posted by: tmana | May 8, 2009 11:22 AM
that's so cool! i've never really hung out with another type 1, but i get SUPER excited when a friend tells me they knows one. my hubby wants to take a road trip up to CT sometime this summer...or if you're ever in the philadelphia area, i'd love to meet you! :)
Posted by: faye | May 8, 2009 11:34 AM
I would love to meet up with other mom's who are caring for children in Kansas City, MO. Anyone? Anyone?
Posted by: Michelle | May 8, 2009 11:35 AM
Thank you for organizing these! Last night was a lot of fun and personally, Kerri, I love your "surprising" regularity.
The photographic proof was well received at my end of the jealous-latin-lover syndrome. Thanks girls!
Posted by: Erin | May 8, 2009 11:37 AM
That's exactly how I feel when I meet with the T1 adults group in Nashville.
Posted by: Cara | May 8, 2009 11:47 AM
I love meet-ups. So awesome. There is nothing like meeting those face to face who you've grown to know online.
It is the best thing ever.
Posted by: SuperG | May 8, 2009 12:05 PM
OMG George, I almost forgot! Karen and I saw something on the specials menu that you would have LOVED:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/sixuntilme/3512878495/
Dude, you shoulda been there.
Posted by: Kerri. | May 8, 2009 02:39 PM
Awesome-ness! :)
Posted by: JaimieH | May 9, 2009 01:46 AM