The month of March bridges the birthdays of our two dear friends JoAnn and Ali, so when they made a visit this past weekend we celebrated both with a cake and low-key celebration. Just being together with friends who go back decades is a celebration, and the older we get, the less importance we place on birthdays, and the more we put on being together.
JoAnn texted in advance and asked if we still had snow. I had to answer int he affirmative, as I look dout into the yard and saw swatch of dirty white stuff still heaped and mounded on the garden and lawn. We would also get a spattering of snow and rain on Saturday, but our plans were solidified, and we weren’t going anywhere.
On Friday night the gals arrived, to a light dinner of classic dips and chips – it’s been so long since we had a proper party, I put together the beloved dill dip in a bowl of rye bread and a batch of the red pepper chutney dip. A dinner of dips, reminding us of parties and past debauchery, provided moments of happy reminiscence, with the added flavor of gratitude that some of those times are behind us.
After the first flush of happy reconnection, and gorging on all the food (Ali had provided an assortment of insanely-delicious Portuguese confections, as she always does) JoAnn and I headed off to bed while Any and Ali stayed up talking util 5:30 in the morning. We’d already decided to sleep in and indulge in puttering about the home the next day, when forecasted nastiness of wind and rain and snow would keep us homebound.
Lazily and happily sleeping in, we reconvened with a few breakfast sandwiches that I asked JoAnn to make (she does them the best) and spent the day doing nothing but talking and munching. By afternoon, we settled in for a viewing of ‘Troop Beverly Hills’ and ate popcorn and movie candy for dinner. The perfect sort of day while we waited for the season to shift closer to summer.
It was a glorious kick-off to spring, and being around good friends is the best balm for shaking off a dreary winter.
