I could get used to this! For the second Friday in a row, I was off on an outing with lady friends made through the pool. Last week Ollavan treated Nancy M. and me to lunch at Derby on Park, doing so for me because I brought her some cheese curds and Nancy 'just because'. That was so nice of her! Today's outing was to St. Johns Town Center Mall to shop and have lunch. Debbie A. and Ollavan enjoy shopping at a place called J. Jills. Debbie is traveling to visit her daughter in San Francisco next week and wanted new clothes for the trip. Ollavan and she each had bags of discarded clothing to drop at J. Jills for which they each received a 30% discount on their purchases. Nice!
I scoped out in advance the store and its location at the Mall, finding it right across the street from the Apple Store. We had to walk about a block and a half from where we parked, thankful to even find a space that close. I knew from the website there was nothing for me there but that did not prevent me from visiting the racks and looking at the fashion. There were hardly any prints used in their clothes, mainly solids in quite neutral colors. That doesn't work for me but I still like to look.
By plan we met up with Lynn W. and Linda C. who also brought in clothes to donate. Linda is a friend of Lynn's and I know her from the Republican Women's group. Debbie was the only one who hadn't met her before. The five of us then went to lunch, also planned.
Pictured here are Ollavan, Debbie, and Lynn, guests at my table at the PACE Luncheon earlier this year
At my suggestion we had chosen to eat at Bahama Breeze, silly me expecting we'd eat on the veranda, as I normally do. These ladies would have no part of that, all Southern women who simply could not be warm while dining. It was hot out but terribly comfortable under the ceiling fans and with the delightful breezes blowing through. Inside was quite dark by compare and a bit chilly, but I was a good sport about dining indoors. Sadly, my buttermilk chicken sliders were no longer on the menu so I had the buttermilk chicken breast (2 of them!) instead with the yellow rice 'n black beans. Yum! Somehow we ended up with three orders of onion rings for the five of us of which we barely made a dent. Another waitress came by and said that next time we should order the small portion. Our waiter should have suggested the same but did not. Hmmm....I ended up bringing all the leftover rings home with me, at their insistence. They believed Justin would like them. They are correct!
After we got dropped off at the pool again by Debbie, Ollavan and I decided to get changed into our swimsuits and join her son and his wife, Mark and Patty, poolside. Let's do it! In no time at all, we were in the drink, enjoying the water and the company. It was so pleasant. Mark and Patty just returned from a trip to Alaska so we were able to hear about their fun and experiences. The worst/best part was the very long days---sunset and sunrise only a couple hours apart. They managed but would have benefitted from room darkening shades or drapes. All in all, though, a wonderful time was had.
The water felt so good and the time went fast, and just as I was getting ready to go upstairs to watch The Five with Linda J., Bill and Nancy came out. Shoot! I hated to miss this but needed to be with Linda, too. We need our time! As we chatted and watched our program, Justin sent me a text message, wondering what I was doing tonight. When I said I had no plans, I expected he'd ask if he could use my car to get to Whitey's. This time he asked me to join him at Saigon Tokyo (Koko's), since it was too hot for them to sit at Whitey's. I am less aware of the heat than most people are, particularly those who labor out in it.
Of course, I agreed to join him, and asked the Chappell's if they'd like to come. They had other plans, however, so it was just the two of us. We had a group of four with us at the table which Justin likes since he was hungry for sushi and feels badly when the chef only has to cook for me. He so enjoys his sushi, has that every other visit for the above stated reason. He also eats my salad and my shrimp appetizer for me. Nice guy! I had told him how the clothes in the shop this a.m. didn't appeal to me, too beige and neutral. He pointed at my plate of fried rice and chicken, thinking I actually DO like those colors. Yes, I do, covered in the yum yum sauce! That guy tears me up!
