Smoking Nun’s Top 10 Events Of 2009, Part 2

6) Donna Mae Moose: I know this is highly personal, but it took the loss of Carlton in January 2008 to reconnect with one of my dearest high school friends. She was part of my closest circle of five all those years ago, and somehow, we lost touch for two damn decades. Once reunited, it was one of those rare circumstances where the years between just melted away. I am all of myself with her… still and all over again. There aren’t a lot of those in one’s adult existence. It’s precious.

7) Strele: It will be two years in January since Carlton left us. It’s frustrating that I can’t share life’s zig-zags and twists with him. I still miss my best friend every day. The dreams that he appears in are less frequent and more thematically scattered. It was also a freaky phenomenon on the day when I actually outlived him, which happened this year.

8) The Blog: That’s you, Smoking Nun! A year ago, this was a side-show amusement, where I posted the occasional photo from a music event and shared pictures from the past. Since, this has become a near-daily destination for me: a confessional, a pop culture whipping post, a photo album, a soapbox and a shitload of fun. Even if only three people a day passed through, I wouldn’t slow down. But it’s cooler knowing there are four!

9) Leonard: I made a new friend this year. I met Lee-o via Liz D., in the Hamptons this summer, and we connected immediately. He’s a lot smarter than I am, which I enjoy. He’s well-traveled, a little older, sassy, occasionally snarky and he challenges me. Yet, he is ultimately protective and loving—all the things one treasures in a good friend. Again, as grown-ups, new people so seldom make an entrance that we realize is good for the long term. A treasure.

10) The Day The Music Died: After following the charts since I was kid—copying down Casey Kasem's weekly "American Top 40"—when I exited Billboard in March and spent the summer in the Hamptons, for the first time, I had little idea what was at the top of the singles and albums charts. When I watched the American Music Awards in November, there were artists I had never even heard of. In Virginia over Thanksgiving, I walked through the music department at Walmart and realized I'd never seen the album covers for new releases from Carrie Underwood, Michael Buble, Norah Jones and Lady Gaga. It was like I was visiting another continent. Utterly bizarro. I don't like it a bit.