Do you want to find out who your friends are?

If you want to find out how many really good friends you have, I suggest you get some type of surgery.

Seriously.

The pain and the panic of an operation are worth it when you discover how many people are willing to donate their time and muscles to helping you recover.

Over the last week, I've had friends:

- Aid me while, er, well, I vomited. And we're not talking hold-your-hair-while-you're-drunk vomiting. No. We're talking coming-out-of-anesthesia-and-sitting-on-the-couch-and-holding-a-bowl vomit clean up. That is friendship.

- Wash my hair. I wasn't allowed to get in the bath tub. I couldn't take a shower. I was woozy and nauseous and my hair was dirty. So a friend washed my hair in the sink for me. I've never felt more helpless nor have I felt more cared for.

- Run to get ice in the middle of the night. To keep the swelling down, I needed to constantly ice this knee. And since I was (and still am for the record) on crutches, carrying things while walking was impossible. So my friends would run out into the creepy night and get ice for me. People usually don't do that unless a case of beer is involved.

- Spend the night on work nights. And then take care of me in the morning. For the first few days, I was literally helpless. I couldn't do anything without pain. So a friend stayed with me. Gave me water, medicine, food. Put me to bed, kept me from falling, cleaned up my apartment.

- Bring me flowers. Before work. And get more damn ice. Did I mention flowers? First thing in the morning. So awesome.

- Skip a doctor's appointment so I wouldn't be alone. Even thought I'd be basically out of it, incoherent and sleepy, my friend skipped a doctor's appointment and drove an hour just to be here. Dammit, I could cry right now.

And there's so much more. I just can't believe how fantastic all of my friends are. This isn't even counting the iTunes I've received, the toenails painted, the magazines given and the other buckets of ice poured.

Nothing is worse than feeling pathetic and helpless. But with such giving and wonderful people around, it's hard to feel sorry for yourself.

Thanks, everyone. Seriously. You have no idea.