Happy Birthday, M2K2!

With all good intentions I was going to search all of Austin for the *best birthday card ever* to send to my dear friend, M2K2. The baby got in the way of all that when my energy took a nosedive this past weekend. In the place of a fabulous card and birthday gift arriving on her doorstep today, I opted instead to copy Melek and her sister Kay's fabulous idea of writing a tribute blog. So here it is.

I first met M2K2 many years ago when I was working for an international telecommunications company. I remembered wanting to scratch her eyes out the first time I saw her because she was tall, thin, blonde and *very pretty*. What really pissed me off was that she was incredibly smart as well. "Keep your friends close and your enemies closer" I once read, and this is true. I decided right then and there that I would not, in fact, scratch her eyes out. Instead, I'd study her, figure out what made her so perfect, and vow to become just like her.

She foiled my plan when she ambled over to my cube one day to talk about something work-related. I was an ethical worker; she caught me shopping for furniture online. We got to talking, began trading stories and the next thing I knew, I was laughing so hard I couldn't catch my breath. Our relationship has been that way ever since. How could I be jealous of someone so fabulous?

M2K2 has had an illustrious career. She was a leader in the Air Force (yet can curse like a sailor). Some of the smartest people I know came out of the Air Force. She was appointed to manage a team of network engineers (almost all male) when she was in her mid twenties (and she ran circles around these guys, intellectually speakng). When we met, I was a service representative and yet she saw in me something that no one else did and launched my network engineering career. She is *the* reason why I worked in my dream career for so many years.

M2K2 coined a phrase that I still repeat regularly: "If you don't know, say you don't know!" In other words, don't make up an answer to something just to sound smart. People will catch onto you and you will lose credibility. This is especially important when working in the high-tech industry. M2K2 taught me many things, the most valuable of which is that it's okay to say, "I don't know. Let me find out."

M2K2 is kind. And funny. And smart. And sincere. You can tell her anything and you will have her full attention. She will not judge you. She's so beautiful on the outside but her heart is more beautiful than the sum of all her parts. And this tremendous heart created two tremendous little people. Of course it did. How could it be otherwise?



So, Happy Birthday, M2K2! You know I love you and am so happy and proud to call you my friend!