I was so sorry to hear about Merelee's passing; in talking about it with a friend last week, we agreed that she was the type of woman with whom we'd always want to share a laugh, or a memory, or a drink, the type of person who brings a preemptive smile to someone else from thought alone. I will be raising a glass to her memory, but also to the Garrison family, who I've known and loved since my awkward adolescence.

I think Merelee would've loved knowing my favorite memory about her, and because it offers an opportunity to make fun of Scott at the same time, I'm going to share it here. I've been a friend of the family for a long time, but growing up was closer with Matt. Toward the end of Matt's time at State High, I was hanging out at the house when Merelee brought Scott home post-dental surgery. As you know, wisdom teeth removal often offers the good drugs, and Scott was all sorts of looped up and incomprehensible. We discovered that loopy Scott was even easier to make laugh than normal, but his laugh came with an extra gift that day: a laugh-hiccup-burp combination that was both fascinating and horrifying. I will never forget Merelee going out of her way to make him laugh so she could mimic him - which would set us all off all over again. I assume that Scott still makes this noise every time he laughs, and refuse to ever learn otherwise.

The picture I'm sharing is obviously unrelated, but since I made fun of Scott, it's only fair that I make fun of early-2000s Kristen as well, and the glasses I'm sporting along should take care of that. That picture has been, and still is, framed in my home since 2008, and it makes me smile every time I see it. So much love to Matt, Amber, Scott, Dave and the entire Garrison family - I can't wait until it's safe to see and hug you all again, and share some more stories about your phenomenal matriarch. My sincerest condolences, and may her memory be a blessing. ❤