4 Ladies and the Cheesecake Factory

One more Boston story and I promise I'll quit.........

My last night in Boston I decided to have dinner at the Cheesecake Factory. If you really know me, then you know my two favorite chain restaurants are Outback and The Cheesecake Factory. So, since the shopping mall that was attached to my hotel had a Cheesecake Factory in it, I decided to go even if I could go to the ones here in Virginia. After my experiences at dinner the two previous nights, I was really looking forward to what was in store for me on this 3rd night. Alas, I was seated at a table next to 4 older women probably in their 50s or so. My waiter was a man, but no proclamation of my beauty this night. :) He did seem to like my choice of cheesecake (oreo) at the end of the night, though. Anyway, I sat there waiting for my meal and going over in my head all the things I'd done, seen, and learned during my trip to Boston and thinking about the fact that I had to go back to my hotel room and figure out how to pack all the things I'd spent too much money on at the gift shops (see previous post). But, I couldn't help overhearing the 4 ladies next to me. I could tell they'd known each other for a long time and that they were from Boston (the accent is a dead giveaway). They were all going through their catch-ups; you know the little stories we tell our friends that we haven't seen in a while to bring them up to speed on our lives since the last time we got together. And then it hit me, they were just like my friends and me. I absolutely love those times when a couple of us get together and just go out to dinner...just the girls. It may just be 2 of us or it may be 3 or 4 of us like these ladies. But, we always pick up right where we left off and it seems like we were never apart.

So, being the introvert that I am, I hesitated in striking up a conversation with these ladies, but I got up enough nerve to do it anyway. I apologized for interrupting their dinner, but wanted to ask how long they'd been friends. They laughed and said oh a long time. Two of them were actually college roommates. They said that they didn't get to see each other that often, but that they always picked up right where they left off and always had the best times. I told them that they reminded me of my friends and me. They thought that was sweet and laughed that I would have a much younger crowd though. They asked where I was from because one of the ladies said she detected a twang in my voice (HA!). I told them and explained that I was there for a conference. They asked if I was enjoying their city, to which I said I was. It was actually a nice little conversation, but I was lucky I didn't burst into tears right there.

It really made me homesick for my girlfriends...for that kind of escape time when you just leave everything behind and go have dinner and catch up. Before I left, I told the ladies that I hoped my friends and I would still be the way we are now when we got older. They really were the sweetest group of ladies I've met in a while. So, here's to the 4 ladies, my final night in Boston dinnermates, who showed me so much about the future and reminded me how important the people in my life are to me. And, here's to your and my future get togethers with our respective girlfriends.