Don’t you love that sparkle in people’s eyes when they talk about things they’re super passionate about? It’s my favorite thing.

After brunch this morning, I asked Dave about his plans for the rest of the day. “I’m going to get some pots for my succulents,” he answered. Neat. Can I come?

The whole walk from the Mission to Succulence on Cortland Ave. was great. We laughed and climbed and critiqued house color combinations along the way. (I still want a blue-gray house with a red door.) It also felt like Succulents 101 — “And this one is called…” “This one only grows on…” “I want one of these…” Dave is a total boy scout and succulents geek and named almost every other plant on our long walk around Bernal Hill. We analyzed plants and he swiped a few leaves as he talked about why their flowers looked the way they do — oh, UX researchers!

When we finally got to the store, his eyes lit up like a kid in Disneyland. Ooohs and ahhhs, first from him, then from me, as he went to go pick his pots. I had to smile. Did I look that excited when I talked about paper and magazines and flying? I went around taking photos of all the pretty plants, super amazed by the depth of field achieved by this little iPhone 5S camera. I mean — really. (Also helps that the lighting was perfect.)

All in all, a wonderful quiet Sunday of good chatter, coffee, and exploring around the city. Need more Sundays like this. And more friends with fun hobbies.