Goodbye Brunch

Shelley started staying with me on Thursday night, since she moved all of her things into storage and donated some things to the Salvation Army. It was great having her and The Beave (her stuffed beaver that goes with her everywhere she lands) stay with me.

Shelley went to the movies on Friday (I couldn't go because I had bible study). It was pretty hot when I got home and it didn't get much cooler when Shelley walked in. She ended up putting her head in the freezer! I have the worst luck finding apartments that are cool!

Saturday morning was Shelley's Goodbye Brunch hosted by her best friend from work, Marguerite. Marguerite's daughter, Makindae, was adorable and really took to me. She liked my turquoise necklace and my curly hair apparently. Angie got her stuffed animals and she had a great time playing with them.

The brunch was a potluck. I made watergate salad, because Shelley hates mayonnaise so I couldn't make my macaroni salad (my standard dish for this kind of thing). There were croissants, mini-quiches, brie and crackers, a salmon dip and so much more.

The afternoon was hot as heck! We all moved to the shade while we socialized. Shelley's friends from the South Bay, as well as her colleagues from Fairfax High, were in attendance.

From left to right: Shelley, Colleen, Angie, me, Jody, Kristin and Gretchen

After the party, Shelley and I went back to my place to drop off a few things before heading to her apartment to "put a few things in a box" as Shelley described it. Well! It wasn't that simple! Shelley had to pack her suitcases for her trip. While she did that, I organized the rest of her stuff into three categories: things to throw away, things to donate, and things for me to keep (I made out like a bandit on cleaning supplies!). I had to load the items to donate into my car, which wasn't parked all that close! Shelley's car had to also be organized. There was also a pile of trash in the yard that had to be hauled to the trash. Thankfully it wasn't far away! I was definitely chanelling Monica from Friends because I had a good time.

After finishing Shelley and I got ready and went out to P.F. Chang's with our friend, Alan. We all had a great time, since we hadn't seen him in awhile.

Shelley and I slept in the next day and got ready for lunch with Angie and Gretchen. We ate at La Creme de la Crepe. It is actually run by french people. Delicious hot chocolate or chocolat as the french say. I ran into my "stalker" as I call him, Jeff Williams. Jeff is good friends with my brother-in-law, Brian. I call him my stalker because month's ago he was driving besides me, honked his horn and took a picture. At the time, I didn't know it was him because it was too fast, but I figured it out because I recognized his car. Since then, he'll text me when he passes my apartment, asking me if I'm home.

After lunch, Shelley and I ran errands. We had to get her car to take it to the guy she was selling it to. Once the car thing was settled, Shelley and I went back to my place for a swim with Kristin before getting ready for salsa dancing. We went to Casa Escobar, which hosts dance lessons on Sunday nights for an hour and a half before the dance floor is opened up. There were a ton of people there and they were all friendly. I didn't wait more than 2 minutes before someone asked me to dance. Salsa is a fun dance--very similar to swing. Kristin, Autumn and Colleen met us and I think everyone had a great time. Alan ended up coming just as we were about to leave, so Shelley and I danced with him for a few songs--Alan is a smooth dancer. He is very proficient in swing, so his leading skills are top notch.

From left: me, Shelley, Autumn, and Kristin

Shelley left on Monday morning. I'm going to miss her!