This photo was snapped about 15 years ago.

There’s nothing like old friends.

In May, I got together with a few old friends in Seattle, who I hadn’t seen in practically forever: Pam, Clare and Pat. We had such an amazing time together, falling back into our own rhythm, much like the way we were back when we’d see each other all the time. It nourished my heart and my soul to be with my longtime friends, so much so, that I plan to go back this fall for another round with them, just hanging in the Northwest.

This past weekend, I got together with another old friend. Christine.

Years ago, Christine and I worked together, right here in San Diego. Then she moved away and we lost track. A couple of years ago, she came back into my life (Thank you, Facebook!), and we haven’t missed a beat since.

I have so much fun with Christine. She’s smart, cheerful, hilariously funny and oozes joie de vivre, to boot! Her happiness can’t help but rub off on me. Which makes me very joyful, indeed!

So, though I don’t see Christine often—she lives two and a half hours away, for crying out loud—when we do get together, we’re guaranteed to have a blast. Make that an explosion of fun!

This weekend, we met halfway, and spent the entire day losing track of time, by doing the following:

1. Shopping to our heart’s content at our favorite department store.

Isn’t she lovely?

2. Trying on expensive makeup from Australia. Talented makeup artist, Tim, worked hard to make me look halfway decent, but had a much easier go of it with Christine, who is beautiful, with striking eyes, a gorgeous smile and flawless skin. He sold her two products to get that look (see photo, above). He told me I needed 15 different products and a prayer, and that I should “hope for the best.” Sigh.

This is Christine, holding her brand new shoes, and starving while waiting for me to pick a place to eat. She graciously allowed me to snap gads of photos.

3. Laughing and giggling while shopping for a travel purse (for me), a pair of pink wedge shoes (for Christine), and a blouse from the sale rack that was such a good price, it became a must-have! (Christine, again).

4. Searching like crazy for a place to lunch. (We’d waited so long, we were famished!) And confiding, and laughing over avocado egg rolls, once we found the perfect spot.

5. Trying on all sorts of clothes in the women’s department, which was seemingly deserted–not even a salesperson in sight! It was as if the store had closed and we were accidentally trapped inside to wreak havoc. What fun!

6. Finally, when we were so exhausted we could have fallen asleep right there, between the dresses and the pants rack, we stopped at a café for refreshing Frappuccino’s, and used it as another opportunity to chat some more. While we were at it, we set a date for our next encounter, thank you, very much.

Then, regretfully, we hugged and said our goodbyes, with neither of us looking forward to the long drive ahead that awaited us. Me heading south, and Christine, due north.

One last chat before parting.

Until next time, Christine!

So, tell me. What’s the best day you ever spent with an old friend?

This is us just before heading home. What a day!