My friend Ruth came to visit me this weekend, largely to introduce me to her Canadian boyfriend (who is soon to move to the land of fake tans and Pinkberry!). I remember when I first moved to San Francisco, friends would visit all the time. But these visitor weekends were generally girls’ weekends. We’d drink too much wine before going out for tapas or sushi. Head out for a night of dancing. Linger over brunch and get manicures and pedicures.
The nice thing about having a live-in boyfriend and friends with boyfriends of good quality and character (yes, I approve), is that the kinds of good times we have have changed, but in a good way. We wax philosophically in a group, take in beautiful sites while appreciating the romantic aspects of them. Talk about futures and politics and careers and homes. There’s less gossip involved, somehow.
This weekend, it was supposed to rain and be chilly. Instead, we got beautiful, warm sunshine and an abundance of perfectly-timed activities in, including nearly a front row seat at Iron and Wine’s set at the city’s Bluegrass festival. I made my famous crepes (you want the recipe, don’t you?). I took them to L’Ardoise for Filet Mignon and pommes frites. We got drinks at Bourbon & Branch (finally sat at the table rather than the bar!) And, we checked out Spork (review to come)–some members of our group proclaimed it to be ‘the best restaurant EVER!’ As my guests have left and I sit on my couch, taking in our somewhat ’empty nest,’ I’m reminded of how truly phenomenal it is to have that beautiful connection with people–where you can just sit around eating, drinking and talking and not have a care in the world except for that very moment in time.
