Last night was one of extremely different experiences. I started the evening going to my best friend's son 13th birthday party at Pizzeria Uno. I can't believe he is 13. She called me the day before, to inform me of the dinner celebration. While I had already made plans for that evening, there was no way I wasn't going to show. Plans are made to be adjusted. And this is a time when always being late will work in my favor. hahahahaha

We talked for about 20 minutes, catching up on each others lives. We never talk on the phone. EVER. We usually get updates on each others lives through another best friend. There are 4 of us and we have been friends - best friends since legwarmers, name chains, and four finger rings were first in style. Since there was no Best Friend Constitution ratified on a specific date back in the early 80s, I'm not really sure exactly when our friendships were solidified. However, does it really matter when and how when you have such longstanding bonds with people?

I remember when she called me from college to tell me that she was pregnant. My first thought was "oooooooooooh. Your father is going to KILL you." Now here we are, 13 years later, laughing and joking with friends and family, and a table full of kids (not all belonging to people at the table. My best friend's son's friends were there too). When the time came for me to leave, I really didn't want to. I realize I miss my best friends. While I have so many friends, there is nothing like your childhood to adulthood friends. The ones who have seen me grow from contacts to glasses, from saddle shoes to stilettos. We intrinsically know each other because we were there to witness the formation of who we are today. We each probably played a significant part in that formation. I am who I am today partly because of these 3 women. One of my best friends is having a birthday in a couple of weeks. I asked her what did she want to do for her day, she said "nothing. just me and the kids" She is such a mother (and I mean that in a good way). I think at some point, the 3 of us should hang out. Go to dinner, go bowling, do something. We don't hang out like we used to. The last time all four of us were together was.........ummmmm, damn was it my birthday?? That was back in March. No wait. My friend hosted a sex toy party in the early part of the summer and we all went to that. But of course, I had to leave to go to another event. Story of my life. hahahahaha Either way I think we are long overdue for a girls night, just the four of us. I'm going to make that happen. Soon.

So I left the birthday celebration to meet my friend E. at a function downtown. She didn't give me much detail but insisted that I had "to be there". Okay, that's usually all the convincing I need. I stepped out of a taxi in front of the address she gave me. I was standing in front of some nondescript brownstone building on a quite side street. This is where I "had to be"? She was waiting for me outside. While she smoked a cigarette, she just kept telling me how "fabulous" this party was. As she's detailing the "fabulousity" and telling me "you just have to see for yourself", I suspected she just might be right, judging from the people floating up and down the stairs, entering and exiting the building. Beautiful brown folks, corporate browns, artistic browns, model browns, wannabe model browns, blue collar browns, white collar browns, celebrity browns, regular folk browns were everywhere. As we climbed the stairs and navigated our way through the multiple levels of the host's brownstone, I was in awe. There were so many beautiful people in the place. What was so refreshing is that everyone we encountered, everyone we passed by or shall I say squeezed by (because it was packed) was very friendly. I must have said "Hi" with a smile well over a dozen times all before we reached the center of the party on the 3rd level. So often, I find people posted up with their nose in the air at these types of events, thinking that their are too superior to be there. I always say, if that's the case, then break out homie so we can get this partay started.
As the bartender made a concoction with some kind of Spanish whiskey (which by the way, was the smoothest drink I've ever had. no clutching the chest or scrunching up my face because the taste is too strong. hahaha), a guy approached me and informed me that I look very familiar. He kept saying "I know you". So thus began a game of "Name that Negro" you know the one where you try to place how you know another black person in 5 questions or less?? After questions about school and childhood homes proved to be unsuccessful, he went to events attended as possibly being the common thread. "Were you at So-and-so's barbeque on Fire Island? "Who? Ummm, no, I wasn't there. "Were you at the Vineyard this summer?" By "the Vineyard" he meant Martha's Vineyard (SIDEBAR: I once overheard a conversation where a girl said to her friend: "Martha Stewart got so much money she has a vine-yard named after her and its a whole island!" Oh dear, somebody clutch the pearls. hahahahaha). "No I didn't make it this year." After a few more questions about even more exclusive events and places, we just concluded that I must have a twin in the world. In my mind, I concluded that my twin is stealing my invitations to great events. We parted ways, but not before he handed me his business card. I chatted with someone else and we started playing Password: the Brown Edition where the person upon hearing you went to __________ (fill in the blank with name of high school/college/grad school), they try to get you to remember someone that attended the school within a five year span of you being there by describing said person. How often do you win that game???

More fabulous brown folks and a few more fabulous brown drinks. I spent the night, sipping, two stepping, and getting to know some really fabulous people. With extended invitations to attend the soiree again, I just may have met some new friends. Maybe, maybe not. Either way, they will never compare to the three who rocked legwarmers and name chains with me back in the day.

Oh before I forget....can you pleeeeeeeaase hurry up and see American Ganster??? I have so much I want to say about it. But I'm trying to respect the fact that you haven't seen it. I can't hold these thoughts forever. It came out today. Go see it. Now. Right now. Tell your boss to shove it. The work will be there on Monday. You're not doing any real work on a Friday anyway. hahahahaha. HURRY UP, PEOPLE!!!!
Smooches ;)