Best Wednesday Ever

Wednesday was one of those days that worked out so well that it restored my faith in a perfectly-planned day.  Frank and I had several stops to make around the Picadilly Circus (effing MADHOUSE this time of year...only to get worse as Christmas fast approaches) and SoHo areas: Lina's for cookies, Gosh for comics, Banana Republic for pants, and Nordic Bakery for coffee.  Not only did we do all the things on our list, but we met up with Kathleen, who happened to be with Laura, so we doubly scored, and Steven.  This was a big moment for all of us: though Steven's met Frank a few times here at home, we've not yet been out as a group.  It was an interesting night.  Naturally, I played the tourist and managed to capture most of Perfect Wednesday digitally. 

Lina's on Brewer Street has been owned by by the same people for over 60 years.  The staff all speak Italian and they import the most divine things from Italy.  Naturally we stood in the store, mouths agape, for a few more moments than was polite.  Frank bought a bag of cookies he later shared with us at the restaurant which closely resemble those he bought in Florence and enjoyed them (and shared them, quite amazingly) voraciously.  With a huge Italian latte and a few cookies, we were set to take on the day. 

LOVE this picture...

I wanted to be sure Steven and I had cinnamon buns for this morning, so I took Frank, kicking and screaming, to Nordic Bakery.  Let me explain...a few years ago, after a Leafs game and on his birthday, Frank got food poisoning from a cinnamon bun.  He can't smell them, much less eat them anymore, hence his trepidation.  Anyway, it wasn't until he pointed out how massive ;) the windows were that led me to my discovery: maybe the reason I like this place so much is its spectacular windows.  They're SO not England.  Wicked. 

 

A hasty photo session at the splendidly large wooden door followed (pictures of me were gross and needed to be destroyed pronto).  

We headed to Gosh next for some comic books.  To say the very least, a TON of work goes into these graphic novels and illustrated stories: it's remarkable (today was a day of wicked cool discoveries).  Anyway, I was struck more by the beauty of repetition in the store and the beautiful lighting.  Reminded me somehow of Korea (uh oh...nostalgia)...

A vast selection of kids' books got me thinking about the little munchkins back home...if you get a chance to see them in their elephant costumes, it's well worth the peek.  They're phenomenal (the kids AND the costumes).  

This book certainly did catch my eye: 

We passed by Fernandez and Wells on Lexington (LOVE it there) and decided that although it's the perfect place for a date, it wouldn't facilitate our five-person conversation all that well due to the bar seating.  We opted instead for Vinoteca, just around the corner on Beak Street.  After about five bottles of wine between our diminished four-person group (Laura went home), we were feeling a bit lively... 

And a bit serious...

(Kat's dyed her hair!  It looks great, thinks I)...

LOVE this picture: Steven looks so happy

Love this one, too.

 I love a man's hands: they're so indicative of their character.  The more you get to know someone, the more you can notice how they intrinsically express themselves using their hands.  If it was dim and all you could see were those hands, you could pick them out in an instant, believe me.  I remember the Ghost's hands (is this still appropriate to bring up?) so vividly on one day when I was about fourteen.  He was unloading the dishwasher at his house and all I could see were his hands.  It could have been anyone doing the chore, but it could only have been him who was attached to those hands.  

I digress...

I love catching glimpses of hands every now and again and recalling or imagining what the person was saying when the image was captured.  I love getting to know someone so well that they could tell you most of a story on hand gestures alone.   

Though there was a tense moment in the "getting to know you" phase, we all wound up happy to have gotten together.  It's interesting to see lives meshing in new ways.  Do you share yourself in the same way with your friends as with your boyfriend or girlfriend?  Who knows more about you?  Are the friendship and the intimate lives intrinsically separated or linked?  This is all new to me...it's literally been ages since I've brought someone around to meet the clan.  It was a pretty awesome feeling all around.   

 

So that's how we spent Halloween this year: pretty awesome Wednesday.

How's your week going?