My Poor Waistline, My Amazing Trip

I am having an absolutely fantastic time in Buffalo... dinner with Melissa was great and it was amazing to see her again. She picked me up around six last night and we headed to a Thai place to eat with her boyfriend (fiance?) Brian (not the same Brian for whom I'd left a note on my blog last night). It'd been two years at least since the last time I'd gotten to see Mel, but as with Kate, it felt like we'd just hung out last month... as if no time had passed at all since our last hangout. Excellent. After dinner, we three headed over to the house they'd bought together and once again, I was amazed-- it is so cute! It's a little brick single-family and inside, it is absolutely gorgeous while still having that lived-in-cozy feel. They put in a lot of work and had redone the upstairs bathroom, all of the painting and a lot of the flooring and woodwork throughout the place by themselves, and the place looks great. Can we say JEALOUS?? Around ten or so, I started to get tired, and it was approaching Mel and Brian's bedtime, so they dropped me back off at Kate's place, where I fell asleep until she got home from work, potentially awaiting a call from the other Brian to hang out.

(These pictures, by the way, are of me and Melissa taken by her boyfriend Brian. The photo on the top was shot last night, and the one on the bottom was from way back in 2002. We're still just as cute together as we were three years ago, don't you agree?)

The other Brian (not Mel's boyfriend) is a friend of Kate's from Rochester, and when Kate and I lived together back in the day (like around 2002), I started talking online with Brian... and from there, a friendship was established. But we've never met, and we've only talked on the telephone a couple of times, so coming up to Buffalo and getting to meet him finally is a really exciting prospect. Last night he didn't get back from Rochester until really late, and by the time he saw my message to call me, it was time for him to go to sleep since he had to be up early to work this morning. Oh well... we've got plans for a big dinner party tonight with me, Kate, Brian (Kate's Brian), Melissa, Brian (Mel's Brian), and possibly Dave (Kate's Dave, heh), and maybe Dave's roommate or a friend or two. I'm cooking the vegetarian stuff, Kate's going to cook the meaty stuff, and hopefully Kate's Brian will provide some of the beverages as well as the location for the party. I honestly can't wait-- I've been eager for Melissa and Kate to meet one another, so this evening will be the perfect opportunity. And I'll get to cook, which I love. And Brian and I will get to meet one another, which will be great! And after, Kate and me and maybe Brian and Dave and maybe some other friends will be going out to a bar, dressed up for Halloween of course, to hang out some more.

This trip to Buffalo is so much fun-- hanging out with all of these people has been (and will continue to be) just what I've needed lately. The only problem is that all of this eating is taking its toll on my poor waistline... but who cares? I'm getting the chance to take a much needed break from work and from Westchester in general, I'm spending time with awesome people, and I'm having a blast. I'd say it's a success on all aspects, hands down, and I'd gladly trade a couple of temporarily-gained pounds for a wonderful time like this. Sigh. I'm so content right now!