Happy

I was excited to hear almost two weeks ago that my friend Becky had found good airfare to come see me this weekend. It went way too fast.

As I write this my sweet friend is on her way across the country back to the Ant Ranch.

What a great 48 hours we had.

Although she did laugh at me when I nearly drowned in the Atlantic ocean (I got pulled out to sea by HUGE waves and then nearly panicked when I tried to swim back but kept getting slammed under). She also tried to coax the sea gulls with potato chip crumbs to land on my head...But she did share her crab cakes with me when my red snapper tasted like rubber and I know with the certainty that she will keep the truth regarding exactly how many "fun size" Snickers bars I consumed in a 48 hour period. Because that's just the way she is.

I feel very grateful that I have gals in my life with whom I can be totally myself...And not hold it against me.

We watched a sunset and a sunrise and that says a lot...For one it says that she is getting to that age when one can't fall asleep until it's late but then wakes up early. But not so "vintage" that she can't hoof it with me when I tell her we will go for a little walk through the woods, but what I really meant was a 3 mile hike that's mostly up-hill.

We shopped at some interesting second hand stores that I had wanted to go look at because I had romantic ideas about finding "vintage" items that would look spectacular in my house. But what I remembered is that finding good stuff takes time, and a willingness to get dirty and dig through other peoples old junk. I know of people who go in there and find the best stuff. I just found that lots of clutter makes me anxious.

We did a lot of talking, and we did a lot of not talking. At one point, after having a morning walk on the beach and coming back to the hotel room for some boat watching on the harbor with bagels and cream cheese, we temporarily ran out of things to say (or perhaps it was a lull from the temporary break in Snickers eating). After a prolonged time of silence we easily slipped back into conversation as if we hadn't just completely zoned out on a 20 minute carb crash.

I got a bit of a sunburn which feels great with the fall blowing in the air.

And lastly, I appreciate a friend who will take a risk and travel over a day in the history of America that one would rather just stay in the safety of their homes and do their best to try to imagine what life was like before 4 airplanes, 3 hours, and 2 buildings changed the course of history.

It's bittersweet that the reason I get to experience the gift of friendship this weekend is because the airlines tried to boost sales on a day that will forever be a memory of fear for the country.

Thanks for coming by Becky, I had a blast.

Next time I'll come to you!