As I said yesterday, I had to do something different when introducing family and friends here.

Enter something different …

The Mask.

And as I said yesterday, this is an antique Mardi Gras mask owned by my friend Texas Linda which has been hanging on the wall in her dressing room for decades. And it is cool … and protective of identities … to use it for all of the pictures of all of my friends.

And as always, “Friends of Holly” is not to be confused with either Friends of Bill or Friends of Dorothy. Which is not to say that I don’t have friends who are also Friends of Bill or Friends of Dorothy.

Continuing today, I thought I would cover the rest of the assorted friends and family that have been mentioned here in various blog posts.

Well, except for one that I will reserve for tomorrow.

And I am still planning on using these pictures and words on the Friends of Holly pages here on the blog.

First up today we have Kathy Of Years Gone By.

Don’t let the bottle fool you. She was the recipient of the bottle mentioned in one of my blogs recently.

And she is the oldest friend I have now. No wait, that didn’t come out right. She is the friend I have had the longest at this point.

We knew each other in grade school and have been friends ever since. And with the exception of the last several years, we usually lived somewhat close to each other.

There is more about her in the blog post about The Story of Kathy and Holly.  She was also mentioned in the post about the Printing Press recently.

Then we have Jeanne The Bat Lover.

Jeanne also went to High School and College with me and yes she is a natural redhead.

And yes, she is a Bat Lover. Big Fan. Totally into it. I perhaps mentioned her when I talked of the bat that flew into my bedroom recently.

Jeanne is an avid fan of and participant in many local Community Theatre productions where she lives … and has recently built a beautiful brand new house. The perfect gift for her brand new retirement.

She is also mentioned in the post about the weekend spent visiting her and my parents. As well as the one about the Happiness Project and a few others.

She enjoys talking about as much as I do.

Next there is Gay David.

What can be said about David?

He not only insisted on wearing the mask, he also insisted on wearing the pink sparkly tiara for his picture.

Oh yes it is.

Need I say more?

David is a friend who often goes to dinner with the girls and adds his own brand of humor and observation of the various wait staff we have. He has also volunteered to be my gay husband. And who doesn’t need one of those?

He currently is visiting out in California and is seriously considering a permanent move to the state. Couldn’t blame him if he did do just that.

And finally, we have Katrina … my youngest daughter.

She, of course, has the most reasons for wanting to be shown wearing a mask. She has known me since birth.

She is the proud Mommy of my handsome year-old Grandson.

Who shall remain nameless for the sake of anonymity … that and the fact that he wouldn’t wear the mask. Might have tried to eat it though. He does have his priorities, after all.

But they were both part of that wonderful day not too long ago in which we all sat around with my parents aka her grandparents aka the proud great-grandparents for a picture-taking, baby-admiring, info-sharing session.

On Grandparents Day.

So, that is the short introduction to many of the people who are spoken of here in the Happy Holly Project. It might help you to put faces to the names. Well, masked faces at least.

Tomorrow I will comment on another friend who agreed to pose for a few pictures in a mask. She deserves her own page.

How wonderful is it that all of these folks have agreed to wear the mask for a picture?

And why exactly is it that they were so very happy to be wearing it?

Almost seemed relieved.