Travel Pants

Photo: Warner Bros.

As I skipped up Davie last night to meet Shannon and Jess, I couldn't help grinning from ear to ear. My girlfriends are so very important to me, and over the last month or so, having been on the road and somewhat trapped by the constraints of my (at times) demanding job, I've really missed them. I was beyond excited for a second girls night in a row this week. We made a quick stop at The Granville Room for some delicious appetizers and wine before heading over to Tinseltown to catch a late showing of "The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2."

Anyone who saw the first movie or read the novels that inspired the films will be familiar with these well-worn bottoms. They serve as a bond among four girlfriends. Each can magically fit into them perfectly. The film, like its 2005 predecessor, chronicles a 'summer after,' as the girls embark on journeys to find themselves, without losing each other. Carmen (America Ferrera), Tibby (Amber Tamblyn), Bridget (Blake Lively) and Lena (Alexis Bledel) all went separate ways and dipped their toes in real life a bit during the summer after high school. Now it’s the summer after their first year of college. Life proves to be a little more real and definitely more complicated this time around. Each girl is beautiful and quirky in her own special way. What I find perhaps most refreshing, is that the show presents its heroines' relationships as complicated, challenging and particularly rewarding, and not simply as a vehicle for finding the perfect boyfriend. Note: there is a significant amount of eye candy though ladies, which is of course, always a good thing.

Keira posted an entry the other day about the beauty in aging, growing older, experiencing life and gaining wisdom. As we get older, hopefully we are able hone in on what is solid and real in our lives. The rich and authentic friendships that I have cultivated in my own life connote mutual affection, knowledge and esteem. Friendship is undoubtedly central to our lives, in part because the special concern we have for our friends must have a place within a broader set of concerns, including moral concerns, and in part because our friends can help shape who we are as people. It is in discovering our individual strengths, fears, talents and capacity for love through the choices that we make, that we are able to come to value more than ever the bonds we share with others and the immeasurable power of friendship.

As a girl who believes wholeheartedly in a supportive "sisterhood" approach to friendship as opposed to the competitive and conniving "Mean Girls" course of action, my heart felt warm as I sat in the movie theatre beside two of my favourite girls in the world. I give this one two heartfelt thumbs up. I'm also seriously fantasizing today about a future trip to Greece...