SIPsters Weekend 2013

A few of my best friends were in Memphis last weekend! We met on LiveJournal back in the day and have been gathering annually since 2009. This was our second meeting in Memphis - we've also gone to Knoxville twice and Jacksonville once. A few people have been friends since they were teenagers, but everyone has known each other for at least five years. We've already seen each other through marriage, divorce, new careers, new relationships, and new motherhood. Who knows what crazy stories we'll have to tell in another five years?

One constant of our weekends together is thrift shopping (the best clothes always surrender themselves at Bethany's presence). We're all different, but we all find good stuff every time. During our first Knoxville trip, someone said we were like the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants. Since that name was already taken, and we'd endured some harassment/concern about having internet friends, we decided to call ourselves the Scary Internet People. Which was quicky abbreviated to SIP, and morphed into SIPsters. So the sister part survived.

Our weekends tend to be very low-key. I had ideas for Memphisy activities, but we always end up sitting around talking and eating most of the time. When you only see each other once a year, there's just too much to catch up on. We worked in local flavor where we could, though - brunch at Cafe Eclectic, extensive rhapsodizing by me and Alanna about Memphis basketball and Quincy Pondexter, and pointing out landmarks constantly. Also, everyone came to church with me on Sunday morning, which made me very happy. My heart was full looking down the row!

Anyway, it was great having friends under my roof for a few days. I miss them already.