I'll have whatever she's having

You know how you can really like your life, but stepping out of it and just spending time with girlfriends feels like a weekend of all dessert, all the time?

I spent the weekend in New Jersey with two of my closest friends.

This was planned weeks ago, and I'd been waiting and waiting for mid-May. Nick was possibly as excited about my weekend as I was. Although he made me wonder if a big part of it was looking forward to having space and time to himself.

"I can't wait for your road trip! It's going to be great!"

"Are you going to miss me?"

"Of course."

"Good."

"I mean, who'll be around to harangue me about my poor food choices?"

Pause.

"I'll ask Marta if she'd mind dropping by to do that while I'm gone."

I'd been sooooo looking forward to this weekend. The three of us used to spend so much time together. And then one of us moved away.

It's still the three of us on email, but it's no longer the three of us drinking wine in the garden and catching up every Wednesday. You've still got the person in your life, but you have the little regular ache of loss.

So as the weekend approached I was almost jumping up and down in anticipation. Friday night I baked a cake to take up. I packed fleece for lounging and a cute dress for a nice Saturday dinner out.

Nick called me several times on the drive up.

"Hello?"

"Roooaaaad triip! No sleep till Brooklyn!"

"Excuse me?"

"Have fun!"

These are the things we did: Talked. A lot. Laughed. A lot. Ate. A lot. Shopped. A lot. The particulars won't be interesting for anyone else.

I will say, however, that I made a surprising number of cute purchases in a short span of time. Shopping-enabling girlfriends with good taste? Cannot be valued highly enough.

And I am sure it will sound like a cliché when I also mention that we watched "When Harry Met Sally" - all piled on the same bed with a big, cuddle-happy dog - but we did. And it is still amazing.

Best, best way to spend a weekend.