My soul sister and best friend, Penny

It's hard to explain how Penny and I became best friends because we didn't grow up together, we didn't go to school together and since meeting in our early twenties we have rarely lived in the same city. Yet, from the moment we met in Doug Rivera's Jazz dance class in Sherman Oaks, California, there was something special going on, even if we didn't quite realize it at the time.

It all started with Doug calling me Penny and her Nanci. That confusion has continued throughout our entire friendship extending to just about everyone that meets/knows us...including Penny's own mother, Ruth, who recently looked at a picture of me and my son, Joshua, on my refrigerator and said, "Pen is looking more and more like you." and her youngest son, Ethan, who once declared after looking at a picture of us, "Two mommies!"

Pen and Me back in the day!

People are genuinely shocked to find out that not only are we not biological sisters, we're not even cousins of any sort...well, at least not technically. Pen and I like to see each other and our friendship on an even higher plane. We always say that I am the sister she never had (she has one brother) and she is the sister I got cheated out of (my sister died almost 21 years ago). Perhaps we have found each other again after a thousand other lifetimes separated us...our souls reconnecting effortlessly...just so happy to be back together. Whatever the explanation, we don't really care...we are just so grateful for 30 years and counting of a magical friendship that has dramatically changed each of our lives.

Penny came in from Chicago unexpectedly Sunday night to visit her mom for a few days dragging along her brother and cousin from the east coast. We spent Monday afternoon eating the most luscious piece of coconut cake at my friend, Jane Lockhart's bakery, Sweet Lady Jane, on Melrose Avenue. Two happier women you could not have seen than us eating that cake. The frosting alone made us swoon. We devoured every morsel all the while laughing our heads off as we regaled each other with the most recent stories of our lives.

Then, we headed to XIV Karats Jewelers in Beverly Hills (the owner, Cheryl Alpert is a longtime family friend) because Pen wanted to get some gold chains. After looking at like a hundred different ones she picked out four truly spectacular chains...3 gold gold, 1 white gold...a well deserved treat to herself. Cheryl gave her the special "Nanci" price and off we went leaving Cheryl eating the Jacques Torres chocolate chip cookies that I had brought for her. She was supposed to share them with her daughter, Caryn, but Penny and I had our doubts that Caryn would ever see even one of them!

Back at my house we had a little time left before Penny had to pick up her brother, cousin and mom for dinner. We absolutely NEVER have enough time together but we sure as hell appreciate every single minute that we do have. We have accumulated countless memories over the years...from me surprising her for her 40th birthday (her husband, Bob, and I kept the secret for a month - oh, you should have seen the look on her face when she opened the door!) to her flying out for all my opening nights (you should have seen the look on my face!) and to everything in between. We have remained steadfast in our devotion to one another, grateful for the blessing of our two woman sisterhood and to the enormous joy we share of being together whether we are laughing or crying.

Lucky, maybe? Fate, maybe? Karma, maybe that, too? WHATEVER it is that brought us to each other all those many years ago I say, Thank Goodness and Thank God for my Pen!

Sexy Stiletto Cake Server

P.S. Look what Penny got me for my birthday this year along with a huge tub of my favorite Costco granola...couldn't be more perfect, don't you agree? Now that's a BEST FRIEND!