Sunday, September 14, 2014

I was determined to spend some quality tome with Paul before leaving San Diego. I told him to pick me up on Saturday nite promptly at 6:00 PM. He agreed. I took him to Herringbone. It was American cuisine, but I had reviewed the menu and thought it would be spectacular.

I even told Paul that I would be ordering that evening. For him, I chose the Wood Oven Roasted Berkshire Pork Chop, and I chose the Summer Squash Fettuccine. We each added some herbed fries, as I had a notion to eat something a little less healthy along with my fresh fettuccine. Once again, as we had done at The Marine room, we would share a glass to complement each course. We started with a Cava from Spain named "Anna de Codorniu". We followed that with a bottle of Chardonnay from Caymus; Napa Valley, and proceeded to move onto Pinot Noir named "Emeritus", which neither of us had the luxury of enjoying before. The wines were excellent aside our meals and we knew we would be taking a cab to our next destination.  Finally, for a nite cap; Paul had a Sidecar and I a cocktail by the name of "Snake in the Grass"....cucumber infused gin, mint, lime and soda; extremely refreshing.

Unbeknownst to Paul, I had reserved a room at the Hotel Del, Coronado. One of the finest hotels on the west coast, we would spend our first nite together there. I had packed my toothbrush and some nice pajamas, but nothing extra. More time would be needed before Paul and I would become intimate. He would have to make a trip to the east coast and make quite an impression at furthering our relationship for that.

We arrived at the hotel around 9:00 PM after a great, wonderful and succulent dinner. I had requested two double beds so as not to give any impression as to any intimacy. We stayed up until 3:00 AM that morning; or Sunday rather, and he made statements to the effect that he wanted to come see me in Asheville.

Time would tell...


I only had a month more at Casa Amor, and I would begin to spend more time with Paul, and with Paul and the children. While it is always an interesting dynamic to see; and one that I hoped would never be a possibility at an early age for the children, Paul was doing an excellent job of fitting in.

Between the two of us, we found more free things to do in San Diego and nearby La Jolla, which was his favourite spot in the valley. There was the science center, the Museum of Contemporary Art, and the parks and beaches. We found a place for free concerts on Sundays' and while it was not your typical or even contemporary music, it was something to go and do.

Paul had taken the time to bond with Liam and they played golf at nearby Torrey Pines each week on Wednesday afternoon for the next few weeks. Neither Liam or Paul were good ball-strikers, but they enjoyed an afternoon on the course leading into evening. Additionally, there are two historic drives near San Diego; considered "must-sees" if you are in town, and Paul even let Liam drive the Mercedes. Impressive, I thought.

Isabella preferred shopping with her mother, and Paul did tag along a time or two and purchase a few things for her. To my surprise, she wanted to try hang-gliding, and so we all tried it. What a rush! I could hardly catch my breath from not only the experience, but the scenery as we flew like birds high above the land. She was my hiker, and took advantage of the National Parks, and also dragged us back to the zoo for one more attempt at seeing the lions and tigers be a little more active. We would return to the cages several times that day, but these ferocious beasts of the wild are just not to be caged and fed like house animals. I feel sure they feel frustrated, lonely, isolated and sad.

We dined at fine restaurants and in the next four weeks, I would have some of the best wine of my life. To be fair, Brady was more of a connoisseur than Paul, but he was not too shabby. He did appreciate food as much as I and the kids, so I have to give credit where credit is due there.

The eight and ninth weeks passed by way too fast, and I prayed for the eleventh and twelfth not to end. This was not my home; however, and I would have to relinquish the keys in a mere two weeks and return to North Carolina and Asheville, my home.