Ladies who lunch

Today I met up with Joanna for lunch in Kenosha.

When we worked at Nevin's, we used to eat lunch together often. Usually at the Fish Market — red beans and rice for her, something fried for me. Occasionally we would have dinner at Pete Miller's or drinks at The Mark, but we hashed out most of life's dramas over lunch at the Fish Market. (Or at Nevin's at table 41, Joanna said.)

That was 15 years ago.

When we caught up a bit at the Nevin’s reunion last summer, we talked about doing lunch.

Sure, Applebee's is a far cry from our fine-dining and almost-fine-dining days, but it was easy to find. It's good they sat us at a four-top because the appetizer sampler plate is very large. We ate mozzarella sticks, spinach and artichoke dip, quesadillas, and wings like we were still in our 20s.

We talked about everything — friends, family, boys, men, kids, dogs, happiness, the dramas of the day. There was so much in the present to catch up on, we didn't spend much time reliving the past.

And there is something so great about a friend who says, "I am going to give you some unsolicited advice."

Almost five hours later, we were still talking in the parking lot. Which is where we shot an entire series of photos where we accidentally cropped ourselves out. But this was my favorite.

Cheers to another great lunch. There's nothing like unsolicited advice from an old friend!