To Us

I jumped out of the cab a few blocks early tonight so I could enjoy a little walk up Lake Shore Drive on my penultimate night in Chicago. (True, the cabbie seemed a little drunk as he careened up Lake Shore Drive, so self-preservation may have been one of my motives.) At any rate, I enjoyed the chance to reflect on the last night I'll spend with all of my friends gathered together in one place. The 12:01am  premiere of Sex & The City: The Movie was the occasion, and we met at Grand Luxe to enjoy dinner and a cosmopolitan before the show. Sure, we know everyone met with their friends for a pre-show cosmo, but it was special for us nonetheless. After dinner, we enjoyed 90 minutes of gossip and banter in the prime seats we'd claimed by arriving at 10:30pm.  So after my little walk, I'm sitting down at my Macbook (with a nod to Carrie Bradshaw) and attempting to wax poetic. 

I know that nearly everyone who is a fan of the Sex & The City series has their group figured out: she's a Carrie, she's a Miranda, etc. So I don't think that comparing my group of friends to the characters in the show is remotely unique. The truth is that every group of friends has a different dynamic, and each friend plays a unique role in that. But, like Samantha moved to LA and Miranda to Brooklyn, changing the group dynamic, I'll soon be leaving for China and Josh for Thailand. So of course some parallels can be drawn. But we'll each know that our friends are only a short email, text, or phone call away, and I may find that $1.29 per minute is worth every penny for a little chat with one of the boys. I also know that after tonight, our group will never be the same. I'll be interviewing in the fall, and who knows where that might lead me. Josh will be gone longer, and others may join the group. (I'm told they're already interviewing for my replacement!) But like SATC, we've spent as many as 6 seasons building these relationships, so no matter how long the hiatus, we know we'll always be back together for the movie. 

And the sequel. Here's to us.