Rich's visit - recap

Rich left last wednesday and headed back to NY. I so did not want him to leave. It was so tough to drop him off at the airport - but with work mounting - for both of us - we had to say goodbye and return to our lives - living on opposite coasts. We had the best time - so much fun and i'll try to chronicle the days and nights as best as my memory serves.

Wednesday i picked him up at the airport - peppered him with kisses and hugs and headed back into SF to show him my city. He was pretty shocked at how small SF was - where were the skyscrapers - where was the 'downtown' area - where were the towering apartment buildings - well, darling, i live in the Marina - and there aren't skyscrapers and towering apts - there are boutiques and cafe's and and victorian duplexes and great restaurants and wine bars. I love my neighborhood. We schlep his stuff upstairs - hello 60lb suitcase - and head out to have lunch on Chestnut street. Lots of good restaurants to choose from and we decided upon Andale - great mexican food. Some chips, guacamole, sangria, grilled shrimp and a burrito maya later - we're exploring the rest of Chestnut. After a bit of walking around - we headed back to the apartment where rich took a nap. I put some of his stuff away - and then napped along side him for a while. We got up around 7pm and decided to go to Cozmos for dinner. Fun place - great vibe - has that NY/LA sort of feel. Dinner was wonderful - they have a new chef - thankfully - and he's done wonders for the menu! After dinner we headed back to my apartment and hung out for a while then fell fast asleep...

Thursday was spent sightseeing - we headed down to Chrissy Field - and walked around - it was quite foggy and really chilly (rich ended up buying a fleece to keep warm) - but we had fun. We walked along the water - took pictures along the pier - perused the giftshop/warming hut. I wasn't feeling 100% - my back was hurting me and so was my stomach - so we ended up driving around a bit and then heading back to my apartment where i took a nap. Woke up several hours later - still not feeling well - we decided not to go out - so instead we ordered chinese and relaxed in front of the tv. It was a nice mellow night. The next morning rich went out and got us breakfast from noahs - yum - and we decided to do a bit more shopping/sight seeing. We tried to get tix for alcatraz but they were sold out - so we ended up at the Masonic auditorium on Nob Hill - taking in the exhibit - the Universe Within - completely wild - amazing actually! Basically it's an exhibit featuring actual human bodies that had been 'plasticized'. Sounds disgusting and mind you - some of it was completely bizarre - but it was incredible at the same time. To actually see the inside of the human body - to see the arteries, the veins, the organs - how it all interconnects - each area defined by a different colored liquid plastic (that had hardened) - was really just so cool. If it comes to your town - GO.

After the exhibit - we did a little shopping and then ended up on Union street. I wanted to take him to Betelnut for dinner - but the wait was out the door - as was the wait for Home - so we ended up having a lovely dinner at Prego. We bought our tickets to see "The 40 year old virgin" prior to dinner - so after dinner we headed over to the theatre - stopping to window shop beforehand. The movie was hysterical! So funny! We headed home after dinner and fell into bed.

Saturday was spent sightseeing again - back to Chrissy Field and Fort Point - the Palace of Fine Arts and the Legion of Honor. Rich took some great pictures - i'm sure he'll post them. I have scattered some throughout this post - as well. I was a little nervous given that rich and my parents were meeting for the first time that evening - so i was a little preoccupied. We headed back to my apt around 5ish - i wanted some time to relax and get ready without being rushed. I chilled out - and spent a little over an hour getting ready. We taxied to the restaurant - Town Hall - owned by a friend - it's wonderful - and has gotten amazing reviews - despite being a bit noisy. My parents were a bit delayed due to the city setting up for the Grand Prix the next day (SF's very own tiny tour de france - usually Lance rides - but this year he passed). They arrived - the introductions were made and we were seated immediately. We had a great table with a view of the entire restaurant - and we ordered some wine while we decided what to have for dinner. The conversation flowed and everything was going well. PHEW! I was so nervous. But everything turned out okay. Dinner was great - and we took a quick tour of the mansions in pacific heights on our way home - mom and dad were cool - and the evening was just wonderful.

The next day - rich and i awoke to the sounds of the pace cars and the bicycles zooming past my apartment - very very cool - with an amazing view right outside my bay window. We just chilled out for a bit - knowing we had to be in marin to meet my dad. He and rich were heading to Oakland to watch the Yankees beat the A's. From what i heard - they had a great time at the game - watched batting practice - rooted for their team - ate 'game' food and cheered when the Yanks trumped the A's. I picked rich up at my parents house after the game was over. We stayed for a bit to say hi to my parents - dad took rich on a mini tour - and then we headed out - and headed home. Monday was Labor Day - and we mellowed out in the morning and then headed over to my parents for the afternoon. My sister and her husband, along with the babies were already there when we arrived. Everyone was in the backyard when we came in - and we joined them - taking a lounge for ourselves. I introduced rich to my nephews - my sister and her husband - and we all hung out and had a relaxing afternoon. Dinner was wonderful - grilled chicken - lamb chops - my mom's macaroni and cheese (which is simply amazing and so not like your traditional macaroni and cheese) - champagne and wine and sparkling water. It was a great afternoon - we had a lot of fun - rich and i played with my nephews - and he chatted with my sister for a bit. We left around 9pm - tired - sated - happy - and ready for bed. Although rich wanted to go out for a drink - i kind of convinced him otherwise... :) We decided to go up to my roofdeck and relax and take in the view - it's really beautiful at night.

Tuesday was spent working a little - until around 2pm - and then we hit Union street for some shopping - rich wanted to get his sister and parents some SF treats - so we headed to some of the cute shops. I ended up buying another pair of sandles ( i have 3 now of the same pair - they're awesome) - and rich picked up some great gifts for his family. After we finished walking around - we got a jamba juice to share and headed back to the apartment. Rich's friend - ari - was going to be stopping by - they hadn't seen eachother in a few years and i wanted to make sure we weren't late returning home. We got upstairs - put our packages down - and the phone rang. Ari was downstairs. Good timing! Ari was great! So nice - funny - genuine - just an all-around great guy. He stayed for a few hours - and we had a fantastic conversation. I really enjoyed meeting him. After we said our goodbyes - rich walked him downstairs - and i fixed myself for dinner. We were going to go to Bistro Aix - but the menu was somewhat lacking and the atmosphere a bit more formal than desired - we headed across the street from Aix to Izzy's - an awesome steak house. It's a regular place for my friends - we love it. I had the drunken shrimp and rich had a filet (i think...) - we had a private booth and had a great last evening in san francisco dinner together. Kevin called from the airport and we made arrangements to meet up - rich and kevin had to meet - they'd already spent time on the phone together - not to mention IM/email - he couldn't leave SF without meeting him. We would have actually spent a lot of time with him had he not flown to chicago on a whim to hang out with a friend who moved there last year. We finished dinner - and headed back to the apt. Kevin called from downstairs about 5 minutes later - and he came up for a quick hello. I was glad they got to meet. They're 2 of the most important men in my life :)

Rich started packing - pulling shirts from the closets, boxers and socks from the drawers - and i got sad. I didn't want him to leave. It had been too perfect - it's always so perfect. He told me not to be sad - that he'd be back soon - and i would be heading to NY in no time. We finished packing - and pulling his stuff together and climbed into bed. I curled up next to him - and fell asleep in his arms. Wednesday was a little hectic - i worked on the couch - fielding emails and phone calls while rich did the same - he finished packing and we headed off to the airport. ug. So hard to say goodbye. I dropped him off at united - helped him with his stuff - hugged and kissed him and tried not to be sad. It wasn't easy. But it's the way it is for the time being. We love eachother - and despite the distance - it's the knowing of what's to come that makes it bearable.

It's been hard since he left - i miss him. But i'll be in NY in october - and he should be coming back out to SF in december. So all is well. We had a great time - the visit couldn't have gone better - it was awesome! I can't wait to get back to NY - that city has my heart - in more ways than 1...

Must go - masses of work to do - very very busy week - i'll update later this week - lots going on.

Meow - K