I saw my friend, Kat, Thursday for the first time in over 16 years. We met in an email group in the late 1990s and have managed to keep in touch over the years. When we saw each other today, it was like we had just seen each other yesterday.

Back in the day, her email address was clairvaux1@someplace and so I called her Jose’ Clairvaux and it stuck. She’s been Jose’ to me ever since.

The other day before we left for Florida, I mentioned something to David that Jose’ had said on Facebook.

Me: Kat said…

Him: Wait a second, who’s Kat?

Me: Oh, you know, Jose’.

Him: What? I thought her name WAS Jose’. I never knew she had another name.

And that’s because I have ALWAYS called her Jose’ since around 1998. 🙂

We met for lunch at Mary Mac’s Tea Room in Atlanta. Mary Mac’s is an Atlanta institution having been in business for 65 years. They serve “made-from-scratch true southern fare served with genuine southern hospitality”.

I had grilled chicken and veggies which were delicious but everyone else ate more of the southern fare. On our table were chicken fried chicken with gravy, fried green tomatoes and cheese grits.

The food was delicious but the company was awesome. We got to meet Jose’s new husband, Jim, and we all talked like we had just seen each other not too long ago.

I’m so glad we were able to connect on this trip as it had been so long since our last meeting. Jose’ Clairvaux, you are a friend of mine and I love you dearly! 🙂