Ode To Kari

Saturday night prime rib and rosemary risotto at the wonderful Alchemy restaurant in Baltimore and tickets to the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra’s rendition of Richard Strauss’s Sprach Zarathustra, the classic "origin of man" music used in Stanley Kubrick’s 2001 - A Space Odyssey in 1986, made for a fun evening which I happily dedicated to an enduring friendship I share with my best friend, Kari, whom I’ve known for over 16 years now. Though we live 1900 miles apart, she in Dallas, I in Baltimore, Kari and I have been like sisters through the years, traveling to Europe and other countries together, and skiing every March with her parents at various points out west and in Canada.

This morning I bought a plane ticket to Dublin, Ireland, a dream trip I will be taking with Kari and her parents this summer. I am so excited at the thought of touring the emerald isle with some of the most important people in my world. So, in honor of my decades-long love for and friendship with Kari, I wore a dress to the symphony that Kari gave to me almost 15 years ago. It’s a little black number by Cachet, with silver tubular beading on the shoulders, a deep "V" crossover neckline and rhinestone buttons at the wrists. Although I had owned the dress for years, I had never worn it, mainly because I prefer black with gold accents instead of silver. But last night was all about my love for Kari and her parents, so I donned her vintage dress with pride noting, with no small amount of satisfaction, that it fit me perfectly.

I chose sparkling heart-shaped cubic zirconia earrings and a matching necklace for my evening’s jewelry because they were birthday gifts from Kari’s parents last September. Together with a rhinestone cocktail ring I found in Las Vegas with Kari and her mom last May, a silver-metal bracelet watch by Mixit, my favorite black patent platform pumps by Call It Spring for JCPenney, a matching black patent belt from Target, a Dea Dread hair accessory by Thea Osato of Baltimore, and an adorable beaded handbag covered with gigantic black sequins that was a Christmas gift from Kari’s mom several years ago, and my look, and my festive mood, was all about a family who has taken me under their wing and called me one of their own ever since my own beloved mother passed away in 1998.

Here’s to you, Kari. I love you, sis. Ireland, here we come!

Cheers,

Lynell