California Skies

I just back to NYC on Monday from LA, where I got to spend a long weekend with Amber, my college roommate and one of my best friends in the whole world. It was supposed to be a long anticipated Girl's Weekend with the inclusion of Kristin, the other member of our trio, but life being what it is, Kris was unable to make the trip out, and was sorely missed. Amber shipped her sweet husband Jeremy off to his parents house in Northern California for a few days, and we took over the house. It was a great weekend of SoCal stuff I miss. I flew in on Thursday and we had lunch at Marmalade Cafe in Santa Monica. We spent an afternoon in Malibu, including lunch at John's Garden down at the Malibu Country Mart, an extra large Mocha Iced Blended from the Coffee Bean, and a trip up to Pepperdine. Amber and I drove around campus, swung up to our old home in Towers, and reminisced about college. Ah, the good ol' days.

If you've never lived in California, I don't know if you can truly understand how it can get to you. Now, I'm sure it doesn't happen to everyone, but for us there is quite literally this physical longing for California sometimes. When Kev and I get really nostalgic we can actually feel the SoCal air. There is a scent in the air that I find nowhere else, but when I smell it there my heart aches. It's a smell I associate with Pepperdine...this damp, verdant green scent that I wanted to bottle and bring back for Kev. Every time we walked out of Amber and JJ's apartment in the evenings it would hit me and couldn't inhale deeply enough. Living in New York calls this into sharp contrast because in the summer the streets of NYC smell like a Porta Potty. Seriously unpleasant.

We are leaving tomorrow morning for Washington DC for the long 4th of July weekend. We're going to visit our dear friends Aaron and Karrie. This is our second annual Independence Day in DC, and we're really looking forward to the vacation.

I hope you all have a wonderful 4th of July celebration!