As much as I love my man, I won’t deny that I get a persistent urge for some female contact every now and again. Sure, Nick is there for me to remove spiders from my room in the middle of the night, to go on a hand-holding walk to the market, and all other things with the emotional equivalent of skipping on a beach at sunset.
But for all that love, he’s still a boy. He still laughs when I compulsively shop on eBay. He doesn’t understand why I can’t leave the house in an outfit that looks too similar to something I wore last week. There are just some things that need a lady’s touch.
On my birthday, I proudly reveled in the fact that I was successfully able to fuse two groups of friends with remarkable results. Now, of their own volition, those friends were eager to not only see me again, but to see each other! Thus, I was only too happy to oblige.
As it turns out, we were all overdue for some lady time. There were romantic issues to be discussed. There were the perils of employment to navigate. There was juicy gossip to dish out. So, we dressed to the nines, hopped in our cars, and rendezvoused at one of my tastier haunts: Sompun Thai in Silverlake. This place is a 15 on a 1-to-10 scale of cuteness. It’s located on a tricky bend on Santa Monica Blvd. that, if you’re not paying attention, may cause you to totally bypass your destination. But once inside, tasty delights await.
Seated in the restaurant’s cozy patio, me and my ladies met and ate and loved each other. Garlic chicken…spicy mint noodles…basil and beef…two Singhas…oh my. Whitney and Melisa, I’ve known since elementary school, and Zahra (oh that Zahra!) has been in my life for near ten years now. But one fact that I’ll never stop being grateful for is how we’ve managed to make this transformation from talking about Jumanji and Jurassic Park (or in Zahra’s case, stressing out over who was getting better test scores in Pre-Algebra) to being able to talk and love and embrace each other’s advice as grown women.
I first came to Sompun a few years back, having been introduced to it by my L.A.-savvy uncle over an impromptu lunch with him and Nick. I felt so grown up. We even had beers! It was all a very grown up affair. But bringing Nick into the fold of my family -and having them take me seriously- has been one of my most important quests. By all accounts, I think it’s working. Although, according to my Aunt Irma, her only reservation is that he has a tendency to over-stress when it comes to school. I’m not worried. He always helps de-stress me. What kind of girlfriend would I be if I didn’t do the same for him?
Sompun played host to a stand-out time that, in my opinion at least, saw me begin my transition from goofy adolescent to a lightly less goofy adult. When asked by my ladies where we ought to go for dinner -Sompun’s glorious food not withstanding- I knew that this had to be the place we went, if for nothing else than me wanting to see another such moment arise.
Missing from the pictures, and I guess my general account of the evening, is lovely Leah, who obligingly played photographer during our little reunion. But her advice is up there with the rest of them, and her presence will be more than welcome at our next love fest.
