Agatha Cami and Brief Set

And, drum roll please…transferred!

To LONDON.

No joke. Out of the blue, my boss called me into her office. She said this opportunity in LONDON had come up. And the position was mine, if I wanted it. It would mean moving to LONDON, for a year or two. And working in the LONDON office.

Did I mention, the position is in London?

So now, yes, I’m moving to London!

What about Colby, you ask? How could I be so cold as to move to Europe just when things are getting interesting? I admit, it’s a dilemma. But, planes go both ways, and surely I’ll have to jet back to the “home office” every so often. I’ve never done the long distance thing before, but I’m willing to give it my all. While I’m away, I’ll write home every day, and send all my…

Hey, is Prince William still single? Perhaps I’ll just order this new Agatha cami and brief set before I leave…

Anyway. I’ve got a lot on my plate right now, as you can imagine, so I’ll be taking a little hiatus from these updates for the moment. How will you know how it all turns out? Use your imagination!

You think you know a person. Then you spend four days side-by-side, and you find out all kinds of things about him that you never could have imagined. Such as, he uses a LOT of hair products. And babbles in his sleep. And misses a big spot when he puts sunblock on your back. Also, he has this unreasonable fear of seaweed and nearly drowns if even the slightest bit brushes against his shoulder in the water. And so, a weekend trip to paradise can become a real learning experience.

Of course, the good things I learned about Colby over our little vacation more than made up for the kooky little quirks. For example, he looks extremely good in a bathing suit. And, he gives excellent back massages and is super careful not to touch the sunburned patch. He is also good at purchasing vacation gifts. Lady Godiva Hot Pant and Cami, anyone? Very sexy, very sophisticated, but also comfy and perfectly wearable. Nice and soft on a sunburn, I might add. And to be honest, I also have an unreasonable fear of seaweed—if it aint wrapped around a nice piece of yellowtail just keep it away from me. So, we have that bit of strangeness in common, and it feels surprisingly nice.

Now, what else happened during my romantic, tropical weekend? Ask all you want, I’ll never tell.

Ate nothing all day but lettuce, crackers, and, well, a few chocolate bunnies I had lying around the office (c’mon, they won’t be back until next Easter, how could I help it?), then went home and commenced packing. Tried on all the most important pieces before they went into the suitcase, to see where exactly that two pounds had come to roost. And well, that Caliente Rebecca Bikini still looked quite caliente, if I do say so myself! Same went for my Walk the Line Fabienne set, and, in fact, all my Eberjey suits. No pinched places or highlighting of all the wrong bits. How do they do that? Magic, I suppose. Huge sigh of relief. Of course, they ALL had to be packed, along with my Warm at Heart Chemise, the Lady Godiva Robe….well, I just threw it all in, because you never know what mood you’ll be in on vacay, right? So what if my suitcase weighs 700 pounds?

In other news, Tot’s received the teeny-weeny bikini I sent her, and she said it was so cute it actually made her cry! She was sniffling into the phone when she called. Of course, she said she ate a peanut-butter-and-jelly sandwich yesterday that was so good IT made her cry, so, I’m thinking there may some hormones at play here. Whatever is was, she was inspired to hop online and order herself a Confetti Ava bikini for her upcoming Babymoon in Hawaii. I was inspired by her confidence when she said, “It’ll be the perfect frame for my bump!”

For example, I celebrated the fact that I aced my “big” presentation last week with a small token of my appreciation (appreciation for myself, that is…why not?)—a bottle of Pure Delicates Wash, to keep all my recent purchases in tip-top shape. The very next day, you’ll never guess! Promotion! For me! I celebrated, of course, with yet another purchase: Delirious Low Rise Thongs in red, mandarin, fuchsia and pool blue. Perhaps a tad extravagant, but I deserve it! Then, the ever-dazzling Sophia announced something spectacular. She’s engaged! Not that she had me spooked or anything, but who doesn’t like to have a little insurance in a case like this? Yep, I did it again…same thongs, but I was sensible this time and went for white and black.

This weekend, I saw a few crocuses and what might have been the start of a clump of daffodils just starting to peek out…so I celebrated the fact that spring is legitimately on its way, by splurging on a box of my favorite truffles to stash in my desk. What, you thought I did ALL my shopping at Eberjey?

So, I returned rested and happy knowing that I can be quite content all by myself. The only slight, nagging question at the back of my mind is this: Is it possible to own too many bikinis? Because I did a LITTLE shopping while away, and the Pop Flower Isabella suit is on its way, as is the Walk the Line Fabienne set. I guess I’ll just have to make sure I have somewhere to wear all these little number in the coming months…

Still life with Pekinese. That’s what I’ve got to look forward to at the end of this week. While I had hoped to turn my dog-sitting gig into a romantic weekend away, it is not to be. Turns out busy season really is, well, busy. And from here to eternity—or, until April 15, to be more precise—Colby will be working weekends. So this weekend, it’ll be just me and the dogs. And about 2,000 beady eyes staring down at me from Aunt Dorothea’s glass hummingbird collection.

Won’t I be tortured the entire time, you ask, by visions of the Siren Sophia sinking her hooks into my sweetheart while they work side by side into the wee hours of the weekend? Nah. I’ll be too busy daydreaming about the long weekend Colby and I have planned. Departing April 16 for four glorious days of sun-‘n-sand-‘n-surf. And whatnot.

The idea had me a little nervous at first. I mean, who wants to go bathing suit shopping so soon after dating a professional chef? Then I remembered: Eberjey’s got suits! No dressing room with the horrible lighting and 3-way mirror for me! I chose the Caliente Rebecca bikini because it looked so flattering and fun. And the Lulu tunic to toss on over it.

A little self-tanner and I’ll be ready to go!

Now I just have to make it through this weekend in the cold, cold country. With no one to keep me warm except those jumpy balls of fluff who bark at every sound and somehow always end up on my pillow in the middle of the night. (Did I mention they snore?) Ah, well. They do say absence makes the heart grow fonder…

Rose is a rose is a rose is a rose…

Someone clever said that. And while I don’t really know what it means, it’s been running through my head since Sunday. The Big Day. Tots was right—the entire holiday is one big cliché, and this year, I loved every silly moment of it. My Valentine arrived armed with roses in varying shades of pink and red, a big box of chocolates, a frilly card, and a really cute and sort-of-embarrassed grin. “I know, kind of cliché, but I couldn’t help it,” he said.

“You read my mind!” I said, indicating my red ensemble and the bottle of champagne I had chilling in vintage ice bucket that’s been waiting for use since I found it at my favorite flea market six, yes SIX, summers ago. It might interest you to know that we DID not do the clichéd, prix-fixe dinner featuring oysters and flourless chocolate cake at a local romantic hotspot. I felt we had to draw the line somewhere and I can’t even tell you how happy Colby looked when I told him I’d ordered a pizza that would be arriving shortly. I’ll leave the rest of my little tale to your imagination, but I will tell you this—there’s no meal more perfect for Valentine’s Day than pizza, chocolates and a bit of bubbly.

My apartment still smells of roses. A perfect pink bloom is safely pressed inside my newish copy of “How to Cook Everything.” (I know how to cook nothing.) And my Lady Godiva Robe, in the most beautifully named shade of Rosewater, is speeding towards me as I type. I may stop on my way home for some rose-scented bodywash…why not let the feeling linger? After all, as they say, Rose is a rose is a rose is a rose!

Of course, the best way to truly prepare for Valentine’s Day is to have your best friend Tots over to review every single piece of clothing you own, so that’s just what I did.

“You’ve got to wear red,” she said, “that’s a given.”

“Of course,” I said, indicating my newly arrived, most decidedly and devilishly red Colette bralet and boythong set.

Tots approved, but said that I had to wear red over my underpinnings as well. I thought that might be a little too cliché, but she insisted. “The whole holiday is one big cliché! That’s the fun of it! The candy, the flowers, the candlelight dinner. You want to look like the personification of Valentine’s Day itself!”

“I do?” I asked?

“You do.” She confirmed. And suddenly, I agreed. After all, Tots has been married for two whole years, so she obviously knew something about finding and keeping Mr. Right. Plus, I couldn’t help but think Sophia would look all washed out in red. While I, on the other hand, would look like, well, just like Tots said—the personification of Valentine’s Day itself!

Seriously, what kind of company schedules a big, terrifying meeting the week of Valentine’s Day? It’s inhumane, I tell you. Cruel and unusual, to say the least.

And, to reiterate, I’m feeling good. Great, actually. I do feel I should mention two things I learned today, however. First, I learned about Busy Season. Busy Season is when accountants are working frantically night and day in preparation for April 15^th. In all my romantic plotting over the last few weeks chasing “that-cute-guy-from-accounting,” I’d sort of forgotten what accountants actually do. The second thing I learned today was that not all accountants are cute guys in charcoal suits and well-shined snaffle-bit shoes. Some accountants are slinky, green-eyed redheads in three-inch heels and too-tight, in my opinion, sweaters. Their names are Sophia and the sight of them perched on the corner of your Valentine’s desk is enough to knock the wind right out of you.

But honest, I’m not jealous. Who cares that Colby and Sophia will be locked in the office together until midnight every night for the next two months? Not me. Really. But there’s no harm in investing in a little insurance, right? By which I mean, the Warm at Heart Chemise in hot (and I do mean HOT) pink. Just the thing to be wearing over coffee at my place on Sunday morning. (Psst…looking for something to wear to breakfast yourself? Just order any chemise by Feb. 10 and use discount code SECRET15 to receive 15% off your order! But don’t tell anyone—this offer is only for my inner circle. What are friends for?) Now who’s afraid of the big bad Sophia?

To be honest, when I suddenly realized that Steven was about as dull as he was good-looking, it was almost a relief. Because at least now I didn’t have to worry about making up my mind any more. I was never really the Marcia type anyway. I went home feeling all aflutter. Excited about now being able to begin a real relationship—possibly—with Colby. About working up the nerve to ask HIM out for Valentine’s Day. And about the possibility that maybe I’d be able to wrangle myself some company for my weekend with the Pekingese (no sense wasting my Cote d’Azur PJ on a couple of squashed-faced pooches, after all). I don’t think I’d ever looked so forward to a Monday morning before!

Not quite ready to be rid of Steven, though. First off, he’s a chef, and, if you’ve never dated a chef, and I never had, let me tell you, it’s worth the effort. I say effort, because they work these very strange hours, and so are usually asleep when you’re awake and vice versa. But I say worth it, because, well, they know all these OTHER chefs, so when they take you dinner, you get special tables and special dishes that aren’t on the menu, and the chef comes out to say hi and everyone around you wonders if you’re some kind of celebrity. And it’s excellent! Also, I didn’t feel quite ready to even mention Colby to Steven, and I think that might be meaningful in some way. I have to figure out what this reluctance means exactly before I do anything drastic. Right?

Those three little words. You know them well. But perhaps never have they been such heaven to my ears. “Marcia, Marcia, Marcia!” I admit I was a little confused at first. I’d just told Tatiana, BFF extraordinaire (BFFE, if you will), about the past week. During said week I’d had dinner twice and lunch thrice with Colby, plus dinner and a movie with Steven (the Midnight Kisser). Anyway, when I wound up my tale of woe with, “I feel so guilty, but I really can’t decide,” and she proclaimed “Marcia, Marcia Marcia!”, I thought maybe the half-a-mimosa had gone to her head.

“Huh?” I asked.

“Look to Marcia,” Tatiana said. “She dated a different boy every day of the week, and did she beat herself up about it?” Not usually, I thought. “In fact,” she went on, “it was perfectly acceptable, and going steady was something that required your parents’ permission.” I sipped my own mimosa. I wasn’t sure exactly where Tots was going with this, but I was feeling better already. “What I’m saying,” she finally explained, “Is that maybe you just aren’t ready to go steady. That’s no crime, is it?”

“No,” I agreed, “but what do I say?”

“Well, that could be a problem,” Tots admitted. She paused, then suggested I avoid lying, but simply keep mum unless asked a direct question. And by then, I’d probably have made up my mind.

“I feel a hundred times less guilty,” I said.

“That’s what girls’ brunch is for,” Tots said. “And I’m not just telling you what you want to hear because Brian loved that Christmas present so much.”

I smiled. Both Tots and her hubby had thanked me profusely for that Hard Candy chemise. Apparently it had been just the thing for lounging around the hotel room on their winter get-away. Ah well, so what if it had influenced her advice just a little? I raised my glass. “To Marcia!”

“To Marcia!” Tots agreed.