I met a priest today.

He told me to go to Rome and stand in front of St. Peter's basilica and get the "willies".

"I can't wait," I told him.

"Oh you just have to, you just have to" he said.

I was just sitting there thinking-- you have no idea how ready I am, and I'm not going into such detail with you about just how badly I want to travel and just up and leave.

He asked what I do and I said "I go to school for art," and he said "that's just fabulous," and I said, "yeah... it really is."

He was the only one "dining" at the time-- at Colichia's-- and I was standing at the hostess stand having a really nice conversation with him. He said he doesn't go out to dinner to eat, but rather to dine-- and that there most certainly is a difference.

I agreed.

He talked about going to school in Rome to become a priest and mostly about how there you dine and the waiter rushes about and you have to chase after them for your ticket-- and that there isn't a huge fuss about being entertained or spoiled by your waiter. I told him how hard it is when customers just don't understand how much a waiter has going on. He explained that he always tells a waiter to not fuss over him because he is in no rush-- but if given the chance he would want to talk to you-- or not at all.

He said, that being a priest, there's a lot of talking and catching up with various people and families and sometimes it's just so nice to sit down by yourself and enjoy a meal without a word-- and he said he also enjoys someone who can just sit and enjoy a meal and each others' company. He said sometimes people want to have such serious conversations at dinner and it's just nice when it doesn't have to be that way.

I agreed.

He said that when he went to school to become a priest, that he actually wanted to know what he was talking about-- that he actually paid attention. I told him how much I loved school.

He had two glasses ( I believe) of white wine, salad and an entree. He talked a lot with Alexa who is about to burst-- she is due in 23 days... the countdown has begun. I've heard her say the same schpeal about her first pregnancy and this one--probably a hundred times. I hear a lot from that hostess stand.

Any how, the priest, Steve, said that he lives in the "hood". He got the job there because he can speak Spanish-- because the priest above him said that he desperately needed someone who could speak Spanish. He threw Spanish in regularly in our conversation. I acted as though I wasn't phased at all. Just a polite smile for such a nice conversation.

I think that's the first priest I've ever spoken to-- aside from the Catholic Priest-turned- Buddhist Monk at Buu Mon Temple right down the road from Priest Steve.

 He would often look off to the side and down in thought and he said "I think I buried Miss Colichia, you know, Scott's Mom... I'm pretty sure I did. I'm going to have to go back and look."

"Oh my goodness it's ten fifteen. I know y'all are tired. I'm going to have to get out of your hair."

"It's okay sir, we're here anyhow and it's just such a pleasure talking to you" said Jason.

It was a nice end to the night.