stuffing your face makes everything better

so the interesting thing about my salmonella experience is that i never stopped being hungry.  unlike the flu (at least in my case) food still sounded good. it sounded great, in fact. but i knew what the outcome would be, so i abstained, except of course when i'd try saltines and/or sherbet to get a status update from my stomach.

on thursday night, the battle raged on, and by friday morning, i was completely fine. i don't know how to explain it, but when i woke up, it was as if the previous five days had been a figment of my imagination.  and once i could stuff my face again, everything suddenly felt more manageable.

the dog got a bath, laundry was done, grinding brake problem was fixed... and, by the way, if you are someone who is lucky enough to have found an honest mechanic - be grateful. i know i am!!

and the bonus?  the bonus was that my friend lara was in town for the wedding of our mutual friend, danielle.  and for me, there are very few cures better than spending time with my east coast peeps to get me out of a funk.

after my brakes were done and danielle's sealing complete, lara headed to my place to hang out until we both left for the reception.  i haven't had many friends come to visit since i've lived here, and it was really fun for me to share my new life with her.

one of the first things she said to me was 'i totally get why you like living here.' and, as people seem to do, she fell in love with cordy, verbalizing what i have always suspected about this little dog, that, 'you can tell she has a really sweet soul.'

yeah. i had a proud mama moment:)

finally, it was time to head to the reception, and when i learned that it was being held at a 'senior center,' i was a little concerned.  concerned and amused.

it was all for naught though as we headed out to the terrace and were surprised at how beautiful it was.  the location was a bit of a hidden treasure, and selected largely due to the fact that the groom's mexican family would be preparing all of the food for the reception and needed a full kitchen in order to do so.

i have to admit that i was impressed with the decor.  it was the perfect example of how to stage a classy, elegant event, on a budget.  nothing felt under or overdone and the proportions seemed perfectly balanced.  the personal touches were simple and perfect, and the food was, well, it was flippin' authentic mexican food.  good thing i'd said goodbye to mr. salmonella because i was in mexican heaven!

you may remember that i recently mentioned learning that a friend had been diagnosed with stage 4 breast cancer.  the bride is the friend i referred to, and as such, it made the evening particularly meaningful.

this is a first marriage for both the bride and groom, who are in their 40's, and the cancer is much more aggressive than anyone originally suspected.  in addition to the golf ball size tumor in her breast, she also has multiple tumors throughout her bones, and the prognosis is not optimistic.  and while my heart breaks for what will ultimately be the end of their mortal story together, whenever that time comes, what a wonderful challenge and blessing it is that these two worthy people have found each other and been sealed together for eternity.

while i expect most of the guests had similar thoughts, an outsider would have simply seen a PAR-TAY! there was food and dancing. oh boy, was there dancing! (not for the knee-challenged, but i sure enjoyed watching.) and it was the first bilingual wedding i've attended, where literally every toast and speech was translated in spanish and english.  i feel fortunate to have been included in such a celebration, and i am officially out of the funk.

and if i can avoid near-future intestinal upsets and manage a relatively easy recovery from surgery, i may even STAY out of it! ;)