long lonesome highway..

I am very clearly dating myself, but I had a song stuck in my head the whole time I was driving up the coast to Northern California. Does anyone remember that television show called Then Came Bronson? The theme song is called Long Lonesome Highway - "Going down that long lonesome highway, gonna live life my way" I was silently singing it to myself all the way from Ventura to Gilroy...haha...

Despite the sad reason I was going up north, we had a really good time visiting family and my friend. It was so wonderful spending time with my girlfriend - I hadn't talked to her sisters or mom in many years, so it was awesome talking to everyone and catching up with our lives. Where does the time go? This was a friend that I spent many a weekend at her house, went camping with her family and water skiing, many beach adventures and way too many sunburns where I remember her parents scolding us for either using baby oil to tan our white bodies or not using any sunscreen. It was a wonderful day with her and her family and friends, very bittersweet but an awesome celebration of life for the man she spent many many years with.

After visiting with her, I drove over to my nephew's house as it was his 30th birthday and they were having a bbq and just hanging out at his house. My nephew and his wife love to entertain and they put out quite the spread. It was so much fun sitting around the chimenea (firepit of sorts) outside and just laughing and telling stories with my family. The next day we did more of the same and then it was time to leave as I had to be at work the next day. My daughter and her boyfriend had driven up with me, so I had some great company. While I was at my girlfriends husband's celebration of life - they took the train up to San Francisco, had lunch in the Haight/Ashbury neighborhood and walked around Golden Gate Park - a nice day trip for them!

All in all a wonderfully loving weekend - renewing old friendships, rekindling with my family and alot of fun reminiscing! I hope you all had a wonderful weekend too!

photo via mumbley joe