Let's Catch Up Over Brunch!

This weekend in Portland was out of control - it was a blast in all of the best ways: there was a lot of booze, a massive amount of food, and so much laughing that I don't have a voice this morning.

We were late to our flight on the way there because one of my girls got wasted while packing and got kicked out of her cab to the airport because she "had a bad energy going" (Seriously that shit only happens in San Francisco...in NY  a cabbie's bad energy would probably just enjoy the company). Five minutes into being in Portland we realized that I had left my brand new iPhone 5 in the shuttle. Classic Jenni. I also ate an entire twenty-four inch pizza much later that night to celebrate getting my phone back (turns out the shuttle guy found it and left it at the front desk of the hotel. People in Portland are WAY nicer than I am...I would have just stolen the phone).  And of course, on the way back to the airport on Sunday we  ALMOST (literally as they were closing doors) missed our flight. But we're fuckin' airport ninjas, and managed to get everyone and all of our checked baggage onto the flight with us.

The whole weekend was classic shenanigans.

But here is the amazing thing that I realized about this group of girls that I love oh-so-much. They are not the "Catch Up at Brunch" type. They are not the girlfriends that want to go out to drinks to find out what you have been doing since the last time you went out for drinks.

They are the type that send you this email:

And within fifteen minutes, this reply comes:

Followed by this:

And then this:

This entire email chain took place over a couple of hours. Not days, or end with "let me check my schedule and get back to you," they just send email confirmations of their tickets.

This made me have a moment where I realized the difference between the people we "catch up" with, and the people we make plans with. Most of brunches involve eggs benedict and me telling people about my life - what I'm doing, what my plans are, where I vacationed. Making plans are the people that I'm going on vacation with.

It's subtle, and nit-picky, but I think it's a differentiation that a lot of people don't see. Or I'm totally late to the party and telling you what you already know and you're sitting there thinking "I am wasting my life by reading this. Thank you Captain Obvious."

Anyway all I'm trying to get at is how freaking lucky I am. Lucky to have stumbled into a group of girlfriends that are like a group of wild cats - loud and crazy, who snort when they laugh really hard, and don't judge me when I do things like meow insanely loudly instead of sing lyrics to songs I like. They pick up on the little things about me - like when I've had too much to drink I can't sleep and it helps if someone massages my face right around my sinuses. Or when they buy me presents they know that I have a really hard time dressing myself, so they buy me plain things in solid neutral colors to prevent an overwhelmed outfit meltdown. They oblige my inner fat-kid, and while driving past my favorite Dim Sum restaurant and I start whining, they pull over and are like "Yeah, sure, we can eat dinner again."

I feel extremely lucky that our men have formed a sort of man-support-group to share secrets about how to handle us when we all get together - because God knows that if it weren't for that I might find Steve in a corner rocking back and forth and foaming at the mouth.

I think even most of all, I feel lucky to have found all of them so quickly after moving to the city in the first place. Most of the time, it takes months or even years to find friends you know you're going to have for life. Four days into my new job, the company sent us to Vegas and put us in charge of running a conference with an unlimited budget. Lots of booze, 72 hours of no sleeping, crazy work deadlines, and unlimited spending cash. It was like a recipe for life-altering friendship. And the insanity has never stopped.

So my Monday wish for you is this: get out of your brunch plans. Stop meeting over cocktails. Go make a list of super fun shit and experience it together. Drink a little more than you plan, and when you feel the urge to be responsible and stay in to do laundry, put on your rally pants.  Send your email with a confirmation number.

-J