The Endorsement Series: Part 3 in however many merit it

Allison "Alli" Reschke, one of Leiah's best friends who I have known since Leiah and she were 12 or 13, has always been sweeter than honey, even when she is puking peppermint schnapps on the back deck or letting me douse her with fake blood to complete her Carrie costume for Halloween. See, Alli shows us up at Thanksgiving by bringing our Mom flowers. She brightens our Christmas by popping over with some thoughtful gift. And on birthdays, she tries to give us free massages, even though her massages are already cheap and even though we go out of town when it's her birthday.

Alli has been through some of the most insane and unfair reality god has bestowed upon one human and that she still lights up a room with her smile is all the more incredible considering what she has endured. Alli has been there for Leiah through everything - through her move to Louisville from Lexington, from Louisville to Lexington, through college, and college, and college, through boyfriend, and boyfriend, and boyfriend, and through baby time. Where other friends have ebbed and flowed, Alli has been steady and strong and supportive. And our family has come to love her and claim her as one of our own.

Today I personally experienced the Alli touch. I needed to get these old stress wads out of my back and neck, so I called the masseuse I adore for other reasons... Ms. Alli. I'd never had more than a sampling of her magic touch before today. She fit me in in no time, rubbed out all the ouches, and left me feeling like I had a new back. It feels like a single unit now, whereas before it felt like a neck, shoulders, upper back, bra-strap back, lower back and side back. Each part had its own complaints, but now they are singing in harmony.

And at $40 an hour, she adds "most affordable" to her title of Best Masseuse in Lexington. Go, see her, be touched by her, claim her as your own.

(Alli can be found at Southland Medical Center, at 137 Cherrybark off of Southland. Her number is 539-6155. She is not one of those weird, "I'm gonna touch you all over," "That hurts but I'm embarassed to tell her" masseuses either. She does just what you want, just hard enough to work.)