Old Friends

I'll start out with my three positives from yesterday -

1. Sarah Keller
2. Laura Keller
3. Marlene Keller

All three of them, right here in Los Angeles. Sarah Keller and I spent the afternoon together. And then the afternoon faded into the evening, and I ended up getting home just before midnight after dropping her off at her hotel. She was one of my very best friends in high school. One of those friends who I made lifetime memories with. I was so happy to have her and her mom and sister as my first official visitors in this new city of mine. We ate too much food, spent a good part of our afternoon helping Cora with a school project that was due today, and got to the beach approximately four minutes after the sun set. After the beach, we stopped at a Starbucks for a treat, and I walked her through her first trip to Whole Foods. That was an honor. ;) We came back to my house and got her stuff, and then I drove her to her hotel, and we talked in my car in the parking lot for a long time. Before I left, I went up to her room and enjoyed a little visit with Laura and Marlene. Treasures. That's what they are.

I can't remember at what point in our evening, Sarah looked at her phone and saw that another one of our friends from high school had called. She repeatedly said, "He never calls, I wonder what's going on."

She sent me a text this morning asking me to call her. I didn't see it until after lunch. She let me know the news we'd missed the night before, and that was that another of our high school friends passed away yesterday.

In the hours have gone by since hearing the news, there are moments, sometimes seconds where reality finds its way through the shock. In those moments, I'm finding it difficult to breathe. This is unexpected and tragic, and I can't imagine the heartbreak that is happening as people continue to find out. My brain has never so actively tried to convince itself that something wasn't true.

On that note, my three positives for today.

1. Scoops. Tonight we discovered a little ice cream shop that makes amazing vegan ice cream. The flavors = whoa! Jake had Maple Oreo, Cora had Cinnamon Coconut Burnt Sugar, Magnolia had Blueberry Jasmine, I had Salted Vanilla Bourbon. We'll be back. And on a cute side note: After eating about half of her ice cream, this exchange happened:
M: This doesn't really taste like blueberry.
B: Oh really, what does it taste like?
M: Pocahontas.
B: WHAT?!
M: I mean Jasmine.

2. Farmer's Markets. Today I went to my first farmer's market in L.A. It was in Venice. Goo and I went on a little date there. I let her pick mostly whatever she wanted. She loved sampling everything. When we got home, and were preparing a little snack with some of the fruit she selected, she asked if we could get toothpicks so she could eat her snack the way she ate the samples. We're going to the Santa Monica Farmer's Market tomorrow and the Culver City FM on Tuesday.

3. Cora. She was chosen as a star student this week (think spotlight), so we made a poster she could share with her class so they could get to know her a little better. (Thanks for the help, Sarah!) I love that she is just so perfectly who she is. This girl is quirky.

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