Friends Make a Beautiful Place More Beautiful. And Conversely.

It's a good life up here in Saint Plotniko, but what makes it all worth it is friends. Plot and Duck are basically snobs and recluses, so they don't have a lot of good friends, but the few they do have are very special.

Saturday night Plot and Duck took the shishito peppers he'd found at the Strolling Baby Farmer's Market that morning, plus Castelveltrano olives and a bottle of rosé next door to sit on Carlo and Athena's deck and watch the sun settling in over the juke box downtown.

Athena made pizza on the outdoor bbq and the four adults and three kids (with the benefit of an outdoor heat lamp) sat around feeling like we had all won a Groupon to go hang out in a little corner of paradise. Carlo managed to stay awake despite having just gotten home that afternoon from a ten hour flight from London.

Once the sun was safely down, everyone walked next door where Plotnik had been barbecuing and basting a Thai BBQ chicken on the grill. Earlier in the afternoon seven year old Avanna had helped him pick salad fixings out of the garden, which had, of course, thrived in his absence.

They drank some more wine and ate chicken and salad and dessert while Athena periodically nursed the baby and everyone gave thanks that nobody had to walk more than fifty feet to get home.