When I got off the plane in Long Beach, I headed to the street and started walking up the sidewalk, looking for Jeff’s white car in the line-up of vehicles waiting on the curb. I was distracted by the passenger-side headlight of this beautiful, new 2015 Mustang and I thought, “What if I could go home in that car? How cool would that be?”
It was then that I realized that the Mustang driver was looking at me and grinning, and that he looked a lot like Jeff. Turns out, Jeff got up early (despite the fact that he had been working overtime that week), walked a mile to the car rental place and picked up a Mustang to help us celebrate the sixth anniversary of our first date. Jeff had called ahead to see if they had a Mustang. They didn’t. But they were willing to upgrade him to a Camaro SS (which is his one of his favorites). He said no, it has to be a red Mustang. They said they could get one, although it might not be red. (But white worked perfectly because I was looking for a white car when I got off the plane.) Even though it was dark outside by the time I landed, Jeff had his sunglasses on and the Mustang’s convertible top down. The first thing we did once I got over my speechlessness was to drive to the cellphone waiting lot and practice putting the top up and down. (Jeff had researched how the convertible top worked so he could demonstrate it for me.)
Jeff also stocked the fridge with some of my favorite food, and told me that we were going to take a picnic lunch and drive the Mustang down to Malibu the next day.
The Mustang does not require a key to start. You just need to have this fob nearby.
I got to drive! Jeff made sure to rent from a place that allows a second driver for free. I was so nervous at first, but the car makes you feel comfortable. You can guide it with a pinky finger, the brakes respond to the lightest touch, and the acceleration is flawless. So. Much. Fun.
Saturday morning we jumped in the car and headed for Malibu.
We stopped at Malibu Bluffs Park for lunch (delicious Trader Joe’s snacks and sandwiches) with a remarkable view.
Part of our goal in driving to Malibu was to take glamour shots of the Mustang (the beach car at the beach).
We pulled the Mustang into a series of turnouts on PCH until we discovered this one with the perfect sign. A guy who was there to take pictures of the sign commented “I’d rather take pictures of your car.”
We watched the sunset at Point Mugu before heading inland.
Jeff brought camera equipment and two tripods, so we took some time lapse photos of the post-sunset shore.
We finished the day at the Veggie Grill in Westlake Village, to try out their new fall menu. (This photo is actually from our trip to the Pasadena Veggie Grill the next day, but you get the idea. We tried the new tempura green beans and golden beet salad in Westlake Village and the new yam hash in Pasadena.)
We finished our Veggie Grill experience with carrot cake and the new chocolate pudding parfait.
This video is an attempt to capture the bliss of a perfect day. (Jeff took most of these videos.)