Date Night at the Varsity

wpid12473-Hither-and-Thither-1.jpg


I recall talking with girlfriends at a park one afternoon, shortly after Hudson was born, and their reassuring me: “everyone tells you ‘oh, you’ll never do this or that again… you won’t travel or eat in fancy restaurants or go to the movies…’ but none of it’s true. Well, except for seeing movies.” They all agreed that they basically never go to the movies.

In New York, the going rate for a babysitter seemed to be $15/hour. A movie ticket, on average, costs another $15. So before you’ve even had dinner or concessions, you’ve probably spent $60. Time to get a Netflix subscription instead.


ON1

So, the funny thing is, going to dinner and a movie—typically a sort of average date—has become pretty exciting to me. Sometimes nothing sounds better or more romantic than sitting in a dark theatre beside one another and sharing a box of popcorn.

It’s made all the better when we get to see a new release downtown at the Varsity. Oh, and by the fact that everything costs a little less in Davis! (Don’t you love all the bicycle parking, by the way?)

Last week, we rode our bikes downtown to the old theatre, a Streamline Moderne building: built in 1949/50, the Varsity was built in a style that, at the time both incorporated and reacted against elements of Art Deco (think Airstream trailers). It’s now a historical landmark that shows more  art house cinema.

ON2

There’s a cafe to one side, and a gelato and candy shop to the other (both owned by the same man), and they’ve struck a deal with the theatre so that you can bring items from either inside. I couldn’t resist the spicy ginger gelato.

If the movie is good, we’ll often end up in the wine bar across the street to keep talking about it. This time we saw The Way Way Back. Have you seen it? It’s funny, sad, touching, and memorable: Totally put-on-a-cute-outfit (I’m obviously obsessed with chambray), hire-a-babysitter, and share-some-popcorn worthy!

What I wore: Old Navy Classic Chambray in Light; Vintage belt; Old Navy Sweetheart Skinny Jeans; JCrew sandals; Ray-Ban Original Wayfarer Sunglasses

; and Michael Kors Watch
.

Also pictured: Sons of Trade Tactical Tote; and a Linus bike (mine’s the Dutchi, his is the Roadster) with the Bobike Mini Front Child Seat.

What have you seen lately that’s date-night worthy? I practically peed my pants I laughed so much at the outrageousness of The End, and I really appreciated the thoughtful Mud, but it’s been a while since I truly loved a movie. I’m really looking forward to that new Julia Louise-Dreyfuss movie, Enough Said, and I always like to see Woody Allen’s films. What else looks good?

This post was sponsored by Old Navy. Check out Old Navy’s latest fashion lineup in store or online at oldnavy.com.

Related posts:

Travel Guides

Browse By Category