Friday with Sunshine

It’s a day off Friday, the best kind of Friday and despite errands and doctor’s appointments I will be having a fun day shopping with my fashionista stylist. Six more sleeps and I am off to San Francisco for the REAL shopping but Kelli will be showing me what sort of things I should be looking out for so I won’t get carried away and buy something that is all wrong for my shape. She really is awesome and I only wish she could go in my suitcase.

Every single person I have spoken with that has been to San Francisco loves it and most say it is their favourite city so I am really hoping that I will not have built my expectations so high that I will be disappointed. In my mind San Francisco is one of those quiet towns that are glamorous in an unpretentious sort of way. It’s not big and bold like New York or Los Angeles and yet it is world famous and filled with things to do and see. One of my favourite western TV shows was “The Big Valley” starring Barbara Stanwyck and the “big city” in that show was San Francisco. I think maybe Palladin from “Have Gun Will Travel” was also based in San Francisco but I didn’t really watch that show until I was older (in reruns, of course). When I was 14 I read a book called “Milestone Summer” and the character ends up taking a trip to San Francisco and I pictured her shopping along the streets looking for furniture. That’s my early exposure to this city. You’ll have to stay tuned to my impressions in a week or 10 days.

So how is it that at 58 I am only seeing the USA now especially given that I’ve had a lot of exposure to various cities and have longed to see New Orleans (yes Richard Simmons, I wanted to go there before I knew it was your home town). Frank Yerby’s early books were staged in New Orleans and I read every single Yerby book before I turned 20. Have I mentioned my parents’ were very liberal in allowing us to read whatever was in the house? I read “Pride’s Castle” when I was 14, “The Saracen Blade” at 16 and when I discovered more books in the library it was a free for all until I was done. He did write a few more after I was 20 and I have read those as well but they were not nearly as good. And by the third book Silvia and I had already figured out his formula. Tormented man becomes more tormented by loving two women who are complete opposites. Occasionally there was a third or fourth and despite being ugly (sometimes) he was too irresistible not to be loved by these gorgeous women.

Anyway back to American cities. Another city I have always wanted to see is Williamsburg, Virginia again because of several novels. In fact one really old mystery is set during a southern garden tour and that really appealed to me. Garden tours? Do they still do that? Apparently yes. Into the bucket list for that one!

Speaking of which, I just read an article about a Longview resident who adds a new item to his list of 100 whenever he completes one so that he is always motivated and excited about something. I think that is a great idea so if I ever get around to making an actual list I will have to keep it going. More short list for today, while short, is demanding so signing off for now . . .