I flew up to NJ on Thursday even though the reunion wasn't until Saturday because I wanted to fit in a few other social visits while I was in town. First things first - about a week before the reunion we learned that one of my close friends from high school wouldn't be able to attend the reunion due to a vacation he already had scheduled. So, my friend Jenna and I planned to have our own reunion with him on Friday. We met for lunch and it was literally as if no time had passed at all when we met up in the parking lot outside the restaurant. Steven was exactly the same, except he now shaves his head bald and is all tatted up! We sat for hours and got caught up on each others' lives. It was a surreal experience that got me even more excited about the actual reunion. We promised to do better about keeping in touch and I really hope we do! We hugged it out and parted ways in the late afternoon. It's experiences like these that remind me old friends are a special breed - if someone is a true friend, it doesn't matter how much time passes between visits, you can pick up right where you left off! Thanks for being one of those kind of old friends, Steven.
Jenna, Steven and I at lunch on Friday!
On Friday night we had plans to meet up with a bunch of people at a bar in Wayne. My friend Christine wanted us to meet her new beau, Mike, and she had some other friends from high school staying with her for the weekend because they were in town for the reunion. Jenna and I ordered sushi for dinner, picked up her sister, Elisa, and headed to the bar. Christine and Ari were already there and Jay and Mike joined shortly after we arrived. There was an insanely loud band playing, so we had to fight over the noise to enjoy any sort of conversation but it was fun none-the-less. We made plans to meet up the next day before the reunion and headed home for the night.
On Saturday morning Jenna's sons (Peter and Andrew) each had baseball games so we packed up the cars and headed out to watch the fun. They both did great and the rain held off, so it was a successful morning. I ran to meet Christine and Ari for lunch and a quick stop to pick up a new camisole before rushing back to Jenna's house so we could go get our hair blown out at a new blow out bar in Wayne. Yes, we actually got our hair blown out for the reunion. In the old days this wouldn't be even remotely out of character for me, but now-a-days people who know me probably think that is hilarious! To catch me without my hair in a ponytail is miraculous. Elisa came over to do our make-up and help Jenna settle on the perfect outfit before we headed out to Uncorked for the pre-reunion festivities with my core group of friends from high school. (This is the same group that got together in November when I was in NJ on my roadtrip!) I feel really lucky that a large group of us from high school have remained close friends over the years and get together at least once a year.
The original high school crew at Uncorked!
The ladies (Me, Christine, Roxanne, Kim and Jenna)
The guys (JB, Drew, John and Peter)
Old friends are the best friends (John, me and Christine - JB in the background!)
After enjoying some delicious 1992 Cabernet (courtesy of JB) we got ready to head to the reunion. I made a quick stop in the ladies room before we left only to have my iPhone take a dip in the toilet. UGH! I didn't want to carry a purse with me all night, so I put my phone in my back pocket. As soon as I unbuttoned my pants I heard a plop and the phone fell right into the toilet. I debated for a moment (which was probably my biggest mistake) and then decided to fish it out. It was dead. I couldn't take any additional photos for the rest of the night and as it turns out, my delay caused by my debate about whether to fish it out or not is probably what caused it to die permanently... It spent 3 days in a bag of rice trying to dry out, but never turned back on. Oh well! We arrived at the reunion and the fun began. I can't express to you how surreal it is to see people you spent every day with for 4 years, 20 years later. It was so fun to catch up with everyone and hear what's going on in everyone's lives. It was also hilarious to see what everyone looked like at 38 instead of 18! The night went by way too fast and we decided to continue the party at a local bar afterwards. We found ourselves at a diner in Wayne at 2:30 am eating disco fries and late night breakfast treats. Just like old times...
Jenna, Peter and me - I hadn't seen Peter in about 10 years!
Tiffany, Jennifer, me, Nadine and Dana!
Me, Andrea, Christine, Tara and Jenna!
Needless to say, it was an awesome weekend and I really hope we do it again at 25 years instead of waiting for 30 years!
Since I was without a phone on Sunday, my time at the airport was brutal with no apps to entertain me or help me pass the time. Of course, there was terrible weather and my flight was delayed several hours. I luckily used my Delta Medallion status to jump on an earlier flight and got out of there several hours than expected!
I am headed to Lake Hartwell, SC for the long Memorial Day weekend with several friends. We've rented an amazing house right on the lake and plan to spend the majority of our time in the water! More on that in the next post.
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