Archie and Flo, reunited in Brooklyn, the 1992 reunion, 22 years later

Archie and Flo, Circa 1996

This is a Louisville shot, back when I had hippie hair and when I chose to dress with clothing I found at the Salvation Army. To my side is Flo, aka Judy, a friend I met in London, England when I studied there as an undergraduate my sophomore year of college. She was a junior at Rutgers, a sorority girl, and a fierce personality that represented NYC, knowledge, funk, and zest. We bonded over HobNobs and sausage rolls and kept in touch for several years after.

In fact, she visited me often in Louisville (this was my apartment when I was getting my 2nd Masters degree) and, together, we traveled many parts of the U.S.

Today, I am in Brooklyn paying her a visit. It's been way too long and one of my goals for moving to Connecticut was to rekindle a friendship with a woman who kept me laughing, thinking, loving life, and despising the ways women shop for shoes. As she once told me while in England when she wanted to shop instead of visit a museum, "I have my needs, too."

Judy became a part of my life and even a part of our annual Crandall holiday festivals. She was with our CNY posse when Dylan was born and when Nikki was a precocious child (um, was? is?). For years, everyone in my immediate family: aunts, uncles, and parents, received a George Forman Grill from Judy - because she was a product designer for the company. My mom, too, still uses a cookie platter given by Judy every Christmas.

In honor of our birthdays this year, we decided to finally make the reunion happen and so that is where I am this morning...with an old friend, hopefully reconfiguring this whole life thing.

I think she was first to call me "Archie." I picked up "Flo" soon after. The rest is history. There's still many more discoveries to be had.