Then and Now

Then...

Tori, Noah and I were going out country dancing in College Station, Texas.

Tori was attending the University of Texas at Austin.
Noah was attending Texas A&M.
I was attending the University of California at Davis.
{summer of 1997}

Now...

Tori is living and working in and around San Francisco.
Noah is living and working in Knoxville.
I'm living and working in Sacramento.
{April 10, 2009}
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Last Friday, Tori, Noah, and I met up in Sausalito and headed into San Francisco for the day. Our first stop was the Cheesecake Factory in Union Square. (Coincidentally, back in December we also dined at CF in Sacramento!) The food was yummy, so much so that we took our cheesecake to go. After lunch, though, we couldn't exit the Macy's building without perusing the shoe floor. Yes, it's a whole level of nothing but footwear! As we admired all of the shoes, we discussed other stores we might want to visit while in Union Square. I mentioned that I'd never been to Anthropologie, but seen pictures of really cute dresses on Stephanie Howell's blog. Noah was shocked that I had never been there before and insisted we go. So, from Macy's we walked down the street and around the corner to Anthropologie. While I enjoyed moseying through the two-story store and seeing their clothing and home decor items, most of the merchandise was a bit eclectic for my taste. Not to mention a bit out of my price range!

From Union Square, we drove through Pacific Heights where we drooled over the pretty houses before making our way to Lands End. The weather was beautiful--sunny and clear with excellent visibility--making it easy to view the Golden Gate Bridge.


In Lands End, we parked the car, sat down on a stone bench, and took in this amazing view of the GG Bridge. I don't recall ever having been to Lands End before...and what a beautiful place it is!


We had planned to eat our cheesecake at Lands End, but because it was so windy (and chilly in the shade), we decided to hold off until later. (I stupidly placed the cheesecake bag atop the car while we took a picture across the street and the wind knocked it down to the ground. Sorry, Noah and Tori, for the thoroughly squished cheesecake slices! Hope they were still yummy!)

From Lands End, we drove by Ocean Beach and then through the parking lot of Harding Park Golf Course, where the President's Club will be held in October. Next up, Tori and Noah were craving some java, so we stopped off for some Peet's coffee (and hot chocolate for me) and then strolled through a few neighboring shops. Noah wanted to take a look inside Jigsaw, an upscale clothing boutique. (Apparently, Prince William's girlfriend is a buyer for Jigsaw.) Jigsaw had some cute dresses and shoes. In fact, Noah held up one khaki-colored dress and I loved it, but after eyeing the $275 price tag, I had to pass.

What a {wonderful} day I had just cruising around the city in Tori's red Mini Cooper (affectionately named Ben), chatting with good friends, listening to tunes from Tori's iPod (I loved the Glasgow Love Theme from the Love Actually soundtrack), and just enjoying the scenery and each other's company. The gift of friendship is truly priceless!
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"Your friend is the man who knows all about you, and still likes you."
-Elbert Hubard