Do You Have a Cameron?
24 Sep 2013
*Hello from Greece! Today’s post is brought to you by my bestest Besfrinn, who is one of the greatest people on earth. You probably know her from her awesome blog, The Waiting, where she dishes out the humor, the cute baby stories, and the wisdom you’d expect to find from someone who is as generally rad as herself. I asked her to write a guest post for me (how have I not asked her to do this before?!), and I totally cried when I read it. I promise I did not force all these people to write nice things about me. But that makes them all the sweeter to read!*
I have a thing that is integral to my daily life. It’s not water, although that stuff is important. It’s not a pizza either, although those aren’t too shabby (especially when they have artichokes on them. Don’t like artichokes on your pizza? What’s wrong with you, son?). It’s also not a pair of jeans that look good no matter how frumpy I feel that day. (No offense, Jeans. You know I love you. *Kisses.)
Nope, I have a Cameron. I have had one since I was fifteen. You can read about how I acquired my Cameron here. That was a happy day. Getting my Cameron canceled out having to read The Last of the Mohicans in 48 hours. God knows what would have happened if I had to read Moby Dick. Would a Cameron cancel out that misfortune? Let’s not tempt fate and just back away slowly away.
From the moment I got my Cameron, I knew I was set for life. I had tried Sarahs and Michelles and Natalies before, but they never fit me just right. They rode up a little or gave me a stomachache after too long. I was always misplacing them. That wasn’t really their fault, but when you have a Courtney and can’t remember where you put it, what’s the good of a Courtney at all? Fact: Courtneys are always getting lost in sofa cushions.
So when I got my Cameron, I was a happy camper. I would never need to use deodorant again and that my days of standing in line at the DMV in front of mouth-breathers were over. The fact that I had found my Cameron made me know that the Sun wouldn’t explode while I was still living on Earth. It would hold off a few billion years now that my Cameron had come.
Now, don’t get me wrong, life wasn’t perfect post-Cameron. Camerons aren’t miraculous, even though they are very, very close. Sometimes I had bad days, like days when I woke up to find that I had drooled all over my pillow overnight which meant that I had to do laundry that day even though I had done all the laundry just the day before. Days when I went on walks and waved at the dogs I passed but inadvertently signaled them to come running after me with their giant teeth gleaming. There were days when I went to make hummus to just be healthy for a change, and the cans that I thought were full of garbanzo beans were actually full of creamed corn. Those days were not-so-great.
But at the end of them, do you know what I had? Can you guess it? It’s not that hard.
I had a Cameron.
Cameron made me coffee while I laundered my drool-soaked linens. She reminded that the people with the grumpy dogs don’t have an invisible fence, and that I should keep my arm-flailing to a minimum. She managed to make creamed corn actually taste good. (Maybe she is miraculous.)
My Cameron made things better. She made them the best.
Do you have a Cameron? No? I highly recommend that you get one. But not mine! Your Cameron is out there too.
Maybe you’ll just have to read a cumbersome novel over the weekend to find her.

Sep 24, 2013 @ 06:03:30
Everybody needs a Cameron! But also, doesn’t everybody need an Emily?
Sep 29, 2013 @ 18:04:59
Yes! Everybody does need an Emily! And an Ellen and a Jane!
Sep 24, 2013 @ 08:54:36
This is so super sweet…and befitting of what is obviously a very, very wonderful friendship. I’m lucky to have my own Cameron. They absolutely deserve to be celebrated!
Sep 29, 2013 @ 18:05:27
Thank you so much! I am sure you know that Emily is the best! So glad you have your own too!
Sep 24, 2013 @ 08:54:52
I totally have a Cameron, but mine’s name is Karen. She’s never made creamed corn, but she’s made all my days in high school and beyond brighter and brighter!
Sep 29, 2013 @ 18:06:22
I am so glad to hear that! Reading everyone’s comments on this post has totally warmed my heart. Friendship is such an awesome and indispensable gift!
Sep 24, 2013 @ 09:22:25
I have a Cameron that I call Suzy. Suzy has a Cameron that she calls Sidney.
Sep 29, 2013 @ 18:07:06
You are both very lucky! I know you are a wonderful friend:)
Sep 24, 2013 @ 09:33:12
I have a Cameron, but I call her Rachael. I acquired my Rachael over the Summer before Senior year. I was a new kid, in a new town, at a new high school, and yet she loved me. She laughed at my jokes (mostly the ones I didn’t mean to make, but my general inability to function like a normal human), she loved me through my inner demons, and she’s the only person I’ve ever known to genuinely like me for the entirety of me. She likes me more than *I* like me. Camerons and Rachaels make the world a better place. <3
(Hi, Cameron! I followed over from The Waiting! Your Emily is one fantastic girl. You're both very lucky to have each other. <3)
Sep 29, 2013 @ 18:08:05
Thank you so much! This is a fantastic comment, and I am so happy to read about your great friendship:) Hurray for Rachaels the world over! And thanks so much for coming by! π
Sep 24, 2013 @ 11:55:18
To MB’s point, I am so glad Cameron found her Emily all those years ago as Emily has been a wonderful addition to our family as a whole.
Sep 29, 2013 @ 18:09:42
It’s true! I just realized that she has been part of my life for longer than she hasn’t. I feel so blessed and lucky that we have stayed so close, even though we have hardly ever lived in the same city. I credit her with making great efforts to call and write, and for always being more loving than I feel I could ever deserve. Thanks for loving her too:)
Sep 24, 2013 @ 18:34:26
I have a Gretchen. They stock them in the same department as the Camerons. Yes, the sun shines brighter because of her. π
Sep 29, 2013 @ 18:10:19
I am so glad to hear that! I love the comment on this post–so heartwarming! Thank you so much for coming by and telling us about your Gretchen! π