Girl talk

I miss my friends! Last week, Reebs birthed a new baby, so Dickinator came to town for a little visit this weekend. Coincidentally, TurboBoob was in town for a family Pesach celebration, so we were able to spend last night hanging out and cooing over the baby.

The four of us lived together in college nearly fifteen years ago, along with six other characters and a cat. So, we had a pretty good catch-up session, talked a lot about babies, other friends, some frenemies and our current lives. And it was nice hanging with people who could check me whenever I said anything that might have rung untrue to myself or really ask the hard questions about my job, Boston, my family and Puppy.

Since Reebs is still tired from her labor and all, Dickinator, TurboBoob and I capped off the evening with some delicious food and drink. It really was lovely spending time with them yesterday.

Reunited and it feels so good

Last week, while in New York for work, I had the chance to meet up with VALedictorian and SameBrain for dinner one night. We think it's been about a decade since the three of us were last together. Certainly, we've seen each other one-on-one when we travel to each others' cities, but it goes to show how quickly we move about.

At SameBrain's suggestion, we went to a very yummy tapas restaurant and ordered all the items that sounded a bit outrageous: squid ribbons, blood sausage bundles and a rich foie gras were just the start.

But once dinner was finished, we decided we couldn't simply return home (even though I promised myself that I would) so we headed out to a nearby bar where I was introduced to Patron Cafe, a new liqueur that may be my favorite.

Our conversation ranged from careers, to relationships, to the goings-on of our high school classmates. It was really nice to be together once again - even just for one night.

John Daly dinner

IronWoman was in town for some smartypants event, which became the catalyst for a wonderful dinner college swim team reunion! Puppy spent all day cooking and cleaning, preparing a delicious dinner of Tuscan chicken and mushroom risotto for the occasion.

Flabs, Jillian and their husbands also came for dinner, leaving their kiddos at home with sitters. An adult evening! With adult beverages! Puppy had concocted a lemonade/iced tea/vodka drink which is apparently called a John Daly. And after several dozen glasses, it became a much boozier dinner than anticipated.

Surprisingly, I wasn't very hungover this morning, but even if I had been, it would have been worth it. Last night was a nice visit and great to see IronWoman while she was in town.

Babies everywhere

Alternate Title: Anne Geddes is a menace to society

Last night I went to dinner with a good friend from grad school who was unfortunate enough to spend this very frigid week working in her Boston office. We used to live blocks away from each other in San Francisco, yet I rarely saw her - especially after she birthed a baby.

Catching up over delicious fried foods and burgers, we basically spent 30 minutes talking about work and 2 hours talking about babies, parenting techniques, her knocked-up nanny, the controversial Ms. Chua, the priviledges of being born into the upper-middle class and "16 and Pregnant". Now, I don't have any kids, so I'm no expert on any of these topics, but since when did my whole life become about babies?

I guess I'm just at that stage of life where all my friends are starting families and it's become the topic du jour. Fortunately, I have enough friends with babies so I understand the concept of the Pack N Play, the Hooter Hider and the complications associated with selecting child care options. I've heard about how trying it can be to "sleep train" an infant and how weekends are scheduled around nap times. And after you see a few friends completely frazzled by sleepless nights and worrying about newly mobile toddlers, all the glamour associated with newborns seriously loses its luster.

So, Anne Geddes, with your posters of "cute" babies in various flower or animal costumes, maybe you're doing the world a disservice by perpetuating an image of peaceful, clean, sleeping angels. But fortunately for me, I've always found these images to be so creepy and so disturbing that I was never bamboozled by your horrific photos.

MLK getaway

Since it was a three-day weekend, Puppy and I decided to get out of Boston for the weekend. People probably expected us to seek out a more tropical climate like Florida or the Bahamas, but instead, we decided to celebrate our nation's civil rights with the First Family in Washington DC!

It actually was about 15 to 20 degrees warmer than in Boston, so it was a welcome change from the freezing cold blizzard conditions that have been common in Beantown. Upon arriving on Friday night, we headed out directly to the bars, where one bartender asked me where I'd been. Since I moved away in 2002? Is that what you mean? In any case, it felt nice to be recognized, even if I was charged full price for my drinks.

Saturday's plan was to enjoy a Mexican fiesta at one of my favorite Mexican restaurants in DC. I'd invited four friends, their husbands and babies to meet us for a rowdy, kid-friendly margarita session. Little did I know that it would be so difficult to organize around seven kids' schedules. Not being a parent, I guess I underestimated how unpredictable naptime can be! Only one friend, her husband and their twin boys showed up. It was very fun to see them, but sadly, I didn't get to see the other friends and their families. I guess it means I have to return to DC to visit them sometime in the future.

We spent Sunday walking and walking. We visited the stores in Georgetown, got Puppy a haircut and rested back at my friends' house. For dinner, we met up with some old friends of mine from the swim team and I realized quickly that the drama from nearly a decade ago still consumed their lives. Some people didn't want to sit next to others, there was complaining about the same old characters and similar concerns to those from the early '00s took up a lot of conversation.

In all, it was a nice visit. DC has changed significantly since I left and there are new neighborhoods where previously only gang territory existed before. It was fun to see those friends I could and it was nice to leave Boston for a bit. Would I ever consider moving back? Probably, but it would mean figuring out where to live all over again - my old neighborhood clearly isn't as cool as it used to be!

Holiday rush

Because I've accumulated a bunch of "comp days" due to work travel, I technically don't need to return to work until February, when our next Fiscal Year begins. So, I'm taking two weeks off to return to California tomorrow. You know, visiting the fam and stuff.

Sadly, no one else is on the extended vacation schedule I'm on, so work continues to pile up and it looks like I'll be dialing into conference calls next week when I'm back home. Plus, I've been asked to work on goals for 2011, which seems to be a necessary evil of corporate America. We make these goals every year and barely look at them throughout the year, let alone review them at the end. And if we don't get a bonus, what's the point except to take up my precious time?

It's also been a busy few days on the social side. VALedictorian is in town and staying with us, so we've been hanging out in the evenings. Her late arrival into town forced me to miss a dinner party at Puppy's friends' home, which was sad mostly because he returned home with a santa hat!

Somehow, I've got to get through it all and pack all my belongings and figure out my plans for the holiday. This must be what people mean when they say the holidays are a stressful time of year.

The big easy

I just landed in New Orleans to celebrate Mahogany Sparkle's and Lezzie P's joint birthday party. With a rowdy group of 21, I don't know that the French Quarter will be the same again.

Dinnertime reunion

Another good thing about visiting NYC for work is the chance to catch up with friends. Since Dickinator and I didn't have a proper catch-up when I was last in town, we decided to spend some time mano-a-mano at a cute little East Village restaurant.

It had been so long since we chatted that we had to reach back to mid-summer for our updates. I guess between my trips to Europe and Asia and Dickinator's trips to Europe and Asia, it's been tough nailing each other down for a proper chit-chat.

We'll have to make it a more frequent occurrence. Although maybe next time we can lay off the fat-making food like spinach & feta dip, mac & cheese with bacon and fried entrees.

My pal the professor

One afternoon last week, an old professor from grad school rang me up to say she was in town, consulting for a company. She didn't have much free time, but was hoping I could meet her for a drink to catch up at the W Hotel, where the company had put her up for the night. Since I rarely have plans in the evenings, I agreed to meet up with her and dutifully headed to the W bar that evening.

It's been several years since I last saw her, but through the grapevine (and facebook), I knew that she'd gotten divorced and had entered the dating scene. In fact, her older brother was an acquaintance of mine when I lived in DC - sort of an astonishing connection when we realized this while I was her student.

Our conversation was focused on typical things you'd expect from a professor and former student: my job, her research, moving to Boston, blah, blah, blah. But partway through the conversation, the topic took a decidedly personal turn and I learned a lot about her recent dating exploits and more about her sex life than I had expected to ever know! It seems we've easily moved past the professor/student relationship and are quite squarely in the "friends" zone now.

Birthday balls

For Jimmy Jam's birthday, Puppy hosted an intimate dinner party the other night. It was a small gathering with Puppy, Jimmy Jam, me, and three other guests.

For dinner, the menu featured meatballs that burst with cheese filling. Very tasty and perfect for our little celebration.

Jimmy Jam started off the evening with a heartfelt moment, thanking each guest for being in his life. But then it descended into a boozey night and we shook off any pretensions of being civilized and just enjoyed the food and company. Just like any proper birthday celebration!

I left my heart

For the past few days, I've been back in San Francisco - the last leg of my multi-country trip around the Pacific Ocean. I've had a bunch of meetings, I guest lectured at UC Berkeley and I got a haircut from the lady who's been cutting my hair for the past eight years.

It was Roommate J's birthday yesterday as well, so of course it served as a reason to get together and I got to see many of my buddies. It's also been unusually hot during these past two days and you can't beat San Francisco on a warm, sunny day. It makes me almost wish I'd never left.

I didn't expect to feel so sad about leaving tomorrow, but I have plenty of reasons to return!

Paris rendez-vous

For our last night of vacation, Puppy and I crashed Charlotte York and her new husband's honeymoon! Just last week we figured out that our Parisian getaways would overlap, so we made plans to partake in French cuisine together.

We started the evening at a cafe, sampling a beer-based concoction that was very similar to what we had in Berlin a few days ago. This version, however, was much sweeter and I didn't even finish mine.

Then we headed around the corner to a small restaurant that Charlotte York's husband had read about - only it was a different restaurant under a completely different name. As we ordered our food, the waiter stopped me as I ordered my starter and wanted to be sure it was something I'd eat. He said it was a very "strange" dish and that I probably wouldn't like it. Being a fairly adventurous eater, I stuck to my guns and said I'd like to try it. He then rushed over to the kitchen and brought back a little dish of it - some very gristly meat in a mayonnaise-based sauce. It wasn't great, but I wasn't entirely repulsed by it. So, I ordered it anyway. The waiter also told us the wine we ordered wasn't very good, so he recommended another one that turned out to be quite nice. I guess you can't criticize him for being dishonest!

Instead of polishing off our meal with dessert at the restaurant, we headed to another brasserie for a nightcap and some sweets. Puppy inhaled a chocolate mousse, Charlotte York had a lovely belle helene and I enjoyed some tried-and-true profiteroles.

It's been quite a few months since we've all gotten together, so it was very nice to catch up. And now that Puppy and I don't live in San Francisco, these chances to get together really are few and far between. Luckily, we'll always have Paris!

Standing in the corner with a cold glass of homesick

Friday night was one of DJ Mother Nature's monthly spinning gigs at the local bear bar, so I rallied myself off the couch and made my way downtown. In between turns at the Mac PowerBook (Do any DJs use turntables anymore?), DJ Mother Nature was kind enough visit with me and introduce me to his friends who happened by.

He and his friends were gracious enough, but it was the first night I went out and really felt out of my element, sipping my Corona and watching everyone else have fun. I left San Francisco with a ton of friends and plenty of acquaintances, but in Boston the friends haven't come as easily. Probably because I don't go out nearly as much as I used to and probably because I have very little patience for "get to know you" conversation these days.

Fortunately, I have Puppy and two squirmy cats, but Friday night made me realize how much I miss San Francisco.

Wordly wise

When Selives visited the other weekend, he introduced me to a little phone game called Words with Friends. I'm now completely hooked and I have games going on with Selives, Puppy, Blanca nad Roommates A&J.

I've also learned that "helio," "ki" and "qi" are words in someone's English dictionary. I've enjoyed playing this game and feeling like I can participate in something with friends who are far away, but I do hate losing.

Walk on the wild side

Lest you think that our housewarming party was all dullsville, I'm pleased to report that the party also featured:

1. A guest who exposed her breast
2. A guest who exposed her vagina
3. A guest who was armed with a handgun

But to be fair, guest 1 was breastfeeding guest 2, who needed a diaper change. Guest 3 is a friend who works as a Boston police officer and swung by on his lunch break. Still, it was kind of weird to have a man in full police uniform at the party, with the requisite gun and handcuffs!

Play dates

Yesterday I visited Flabs, her husband and her two daughters (one of whom is a mere two weeks old!). All my friends in Boston seem to have kids, so instead of going out and carousing with my pals, I've been catching up during the day, when the kids are between naps.

We packed the car, went a few blocks away and ended up at a neighborhood playground, where toddlers ran amok, crawling all over the jungle gym, pushing cars around, throwing sand in the air and generally running around. Flabs and I basically sat on a bench and ate sandwiches, getting crumbs all over the new baby.

And later in the day, on my way home from the gym, I stopped by another playground where Reebs, her husband and their daughter were enjoying the great outdoors. Reebs was with several of her mommy friends and again, I watched toddlers run around, play on the monkey bars and scream at each other.

My life in Boston is very different than the life I led in San Francisco.

Party like it's 1999

When Reebs and I lived together in Washington DC, we were often too poor and/or too lazy to go out on the town. A nice Friday night for us would find us on the couch or on one of our beds, sharing a bottle of wine and talking about the week's activities.

A decade later, it looks like we've fallen back into our old pattern. With her husband stranded in London due to a canceled flight, and since she cannot leave her two-year-old daughter alone, I went over to her house (a mere two blocks away), watched her put her kid to bed and we shared some wine and ordered Thai.

We enjoyed an order of gold bags, pad thai and green curry, sipped on some wine and shared our latest news. It was a lovely, low-key Friday night and now that we're neighbors, I'm sure we'll spend more time like it's the late '90s.

Home sweet home

I've been back in San Francisco for the last 44 hours or so, and it's so nice to be back! I'm in town for meetings, but I've been able to squeeze in some time to see friends, also. Some highlights of my visit thus far:

* Running into Gerbil on the muni randomly
* Taking the bus up the hill to get home last night, after too many drinks and realizing that I didn't have a muni pass anymore
* Spending time with Puppy and the kitties
* Returning to my old office for a meeting and being greeted by security as if I'd never left
* Having the Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf folks remember my name and my drink
* Getting free drinks at the local watering hole with Roommates A&J, Mahogany Sparkle and Lucy Ricardo

I miss my San Francisco life!

Brunch in Brookline

Today was decidedly more exciting than yesterday, although I still managed to get a bad On Demand movie (G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, starring Sienna Miller, who was terribAAAAARRRRRRRFFFFFFFFF).

I drove to Brookline and met up with Bullet Tosser and her main squeeze for brunch at a very popular little restaurant called Zaftig's. Since they live around the corner, Bullet Tosser added our name to the wait list in advance of my arrival. Unfortunately, I arrived 30 minutes late, due to a bridge near my house having opened to let in an ocean liner of some sort. Ah yes, another pleasure of living in the 'burbs.

No matter, we stuffed our faces with delicious food and followed it up with some ice cream (I got some hot fudge because it was cold out.), which I think motivated me to get in a little workout in our building complex's fitness center. It wasn't the best workout, but it was good to sweat today.

We're on vacation

SameBrain and I took a little trip into the city yesterday, situated ourselves at the cute Copley Place Hotel, and decided to eat, drink and shop our way through Boston. Even though I supposedly live here, we definitely were in vacation mode, where everything was forgiven and we allowed ourselves to indulge in anything. We ate well, drank well and basically spent a lazy 30 hours together.

We met up with some of my friends for dinner last night, but ended up meeting SameBrain's friend for drinks afterward. This fellow had no problems divulging the intricacies of his sex life and drug use and revealed some interesting tidbits about the clients he'd bagged back in the day when he and SameBrain worked together.

I couldn't help but notice how frenetic he was and how he reminded me of Vibrating Crackhead, whom I thought I'd left behind for good in San Francisco. And when he confessed that he used to leave work in the middle of the day to smoke crack, it all made sense to me.