The party nobody came to . . .

Thankfully, this was not it.

We had friends for dinner last night. Well, not literally. I mean, we didn't eat them. We actually ate barbecued ribs, potato salad, fresh bread and plenty of beer. Regardless, the food was good, but not the highlight of the evening.

The highlight was the company. This is a rather interesting mix of people. Three couples: One in their 60s, one in their 50s and one in their 40s. Four to six times each year we get together to argue. Ok, maybe it's not the healthiest relationship in the world, but it is interesting. Actually, we don't seriously argue, we have lively, animated discussions about a myriad of topics: Politics, ethics, golf, work, life.

The 60 somethings have never had children. The female half is a retired elementary teacher, the male half works in city administration. The 50 somethings are grandparents. The female half works in management, the male half at a high paying blue collar job. My husband and I are the 40 somethings of the group, my husband is a high school teacher, I have a home-based bookkeeping business. We are an eclectic group.

Then, very unexpectedly, nearly a year ago, my husband and I had our first child. I wondered at the time how this would change the dynamic of all of our friendships, this group in particular. So far, the song remains the same, but I continue to worry/wonder.

How will our son affect our friendships? How will our friendships affect our son?

Wow! Did I get off topic? I really did throw a party some years ago that no one came to. It was my intent to say that it has made me a somewhat reluctant and rather spontaneous hostess. (If I don't plan too much, it doesn't become a big deal, and then if no one shows it doesn't matter?) It always takes me by surprise when I host a get-together and we actually do get together!