Recoup

Catherine and I hugged and bounced around hysterically in the lobbey of my hostel. We haven't seen each other for over three years. She phoned me on Monday and said she would steal me away for what she decribed to be selfish reasons but of course it would help me out incredibly. Not only could I get a refund from the hostel for the remaining nights of my stay, but I would get to see Cat sooner and be with her for her birthday - amazing. I said "yes! come and get me!"

I'd had enough fun in San Francisco and it wasn't quite the same once Leah left. I caught all the important things like the Golden Gate Bridge and its park (two completely different locations, mind) and I got me a picture of Alcatraz and all that jazz. The Japanese Tea Garden had been my highlight; I had soaked up enough of the city's gorgeous views. So I was ready to go Wednesday morning, only slightly sad that I wouldn't be around for Fleet Week afterall, but hey, I guess I wasn't meant to bag me a sailor. I hate boats and the sea gives me the heeby-geebies, so honestly, would that have really worked?

Cat and I picked up right where we had left off as if we had seen each other the day before...don't you just love having friendships like that?

Many moons ago when I was working at Lush, cutting soap and doing bath-bomb demos, a spritely South African woman with a cheshire cat grin came in for an interview, she had me at "hello! I'm Cat!". She had more energy than I could have ever hoped for and quite a playful vocabulary. We bonded over a passion for writing, creative swearing, tea, magical realism and Madness - the band as well as the mental state.

We clicked, we were kindred. I was blown away by her infinite wisdom, her worldliness and her refreshing perspectives on everything. I was just the tender age of eighteen when we met and I owe a lot of my growth to her. She offered me her sensitive ear and her compassionate arms that always wrapped themselves around me when I really needed it, without me having to ask.

Our morning shifts together at Lush were certainly the glory days. Before opening the shop, one of us would fetch coffee and we'd chat and smoke our way into the day; Baggy Trousers and Nightboat to Cairo was the soundtrack to us unpacking the delivery.

How delighted I was to see that she hasn't changed at all, she's still incredibly intelligent, witty, playful and heartfelt and I still adore her for being her.

She and her husband Niall live in Silicon Valley, right in the heart of tech-wonderland where the Google and Firefox headquarters are and of course it's the hometown of Steve Jobs, co-founder of Apple. So how strange on my first day of being here, he passed away (no, I didn't do it). Thursday was Cat's birthday so we had a dinner party that evening with one of Niall's old computer programming colleagues and his girlfriend. We swapped bizarre stories, danced around to 50's rock n' roll and ran off a spotify playlist of dead musicians, most entertaining.

Over the last couple of days there has been lots of wine, Typhoo tea, Steve Jobs memorials, vegetarian food (yes!), critical analysis of the Amercan culture, fluffy carpets, poetry riffs, great reading and obscenely overdue catch-ups.

This is my place to recoup, to regain things I had lost: a decent nights' sleep, the motivation to write, the freedom to be silly and a friend who has helped shape me into the wonderfully weird and colourful person that I have become.