Twenty-eight

Last Friday I got a flu shot at work. As I filled out the form, I realized this was my last chance to list my age as 27, because my birthday was the next day. I feel like I was just 26, and now all of a sudden I'm 28? What's up with that?

But yes, Saturday was my birthday. It comprised the second portion of a four-part series of birthday celebrations stretched out over a week or so. I felt like I was being greedy, to be honest, but with far-flung friends and family (and alliteration) sometimes it can't be helped. At any rate, I'm not really complaining.

Two weekends ago, as you may know, was Maudie's birthday weekend in Tahoe. I also count that as part one of my celebration, because it was just a week before my birthday, and that's how I justified the added vacation day to myself. Plus, over the weekend I got to share (and by "share" I mean "eat three of") the chocolate chai birthday cupcakes Uyen made for Maudie.

Saturday, on my actual birthday, I got a haircut, went to the Festival of Trees in Racine, and then attended the Laurie's Planet of Sound 10th Anniversary celebration at the Hideout. Sam was kind enough to buy me a ticket, and it was a really fun night. Adam Fitz, Vee Dee, and Miss Alex White performed, and I got to celebrate with many Chicago friends. I even received my own birthday cupcakes with adorable flowers on top, courtesy of Laura. The candles were eventually lit from a candle sitting on the Hideout bar. I think that's good birthday candle karma for the upcoming year. My only regret was being too tired to hold out until Sam's late-night DJ set. I blame my age.


The next day, Sunday, was my family birthday celebration. I received a hand-colored birthday card from the older twins, a rain check for a gift from my oldest sister (who hadn't had a chance to extricate herself from minding the younger twins in the past week), and a promise of post-Thanksgiving shopping and a lovely birthday cake from my parents. My mom got the cake from a local Italian bakery; my request of a blueberry and custard torte with whipped cream frosting. A big slice of that was my main sustenance for the day, and now I can dream about it for another year.


Monday night was the finale of Birthday Week; a low-key get-together for local friends at my place. I served my guests beer and soda from Halloween, salt water taffy, three kinds of pizzelle, and local handmade chocolates that we get for birthdays at work. I figured we'll all get enough heavy baked goods later this week anyway. We played 90's Trivial Pursuit, opened presents and cards (well, that was mostly just me) and had a fine time in general.


Speaking of later this week, I really think Thanksgiving weekend might be my favorite weekend of the whole year. It's a long weekend (at least I always take Friday off to make it one) with no responsibilities except to eat, relax, spend time with family, and go shopping. Our family begins decorating for Christmas over the weekend, which I also find terribly exciting. I can't wait to decorate my condo for Christmas. Seasonal display in the over-the-fireplace box!

A week in California (and Nevada)

Last week I was in Sacramento for work. Despite the long shifts it was actually a good time - dinner every night with coworkers, including lots of sushi and a fantastic Italian meal to finish out the week. On Friday I had some time to actually explore the city during daylight hours, and walked my way from Capitol Park to Old Sacramento, and back to Midtown and some cool little shops. I found a used copy of a CD I've been hunting for at least two years, history-geeked out over the old time-y buildings in Old Sacramento, and raced around trying to refill my meter every couple of hours before it expired. (I was always too late, but managed to avoid a ticket nonetheless.)


Soon Uyen arrived and it was off to Tahoe for Maudie's birthday weekend. I adored Tahoe. It was a perfect (for me) mix of campy "rustic" shops, restaurants, and hotels, swanky spas and boutiques, casinos that are, mmm, a notch or two below their Vegas counterparts ... and, in the background, this magnificent natural beauty everywhere. It was the type of place that made me feel nostalgic for childhood family vacations, despite the fact that I'd never been there on a family vacation. We made the most of our time in Tahoe: swimming, being pampered in spas, gambling (I won!), working out (a little), eating (a lot), watching girly movies, and just hanging out in our palatial suite at the Timber Lodge enjoying the scenery and the company. I hope Maudie has a birthday in Tahoe every year, and I hope I'm lucky enough to be invited. At the very least, another big blowout in 2017!


On Sunday evening, Uyen and I returned to San Francisco by way of Napa. We had a fantastic dinner at Ad Hoc in Yountville. As if the food weren't enough, we had a couple of celebrity sightings: Thomas Keller (chef and owner extraordinaire) was sitting at a table when we first arrived, and later Reese Witherspoon and Jake Gyllenhaal came in for a late dinner. I hope they enjoyed the meal as much as we did - I love letting the chef decide what I'm going to eat.


Monday I flew back home in the late afternoon, but beforehand I was able to squeeze in a nice walk down to the beach and the Presidio. Technically I wasn't supposed to be near the beach, as a sign indicated when I got down far enough. I had forgotten about the recent oil spill, and cleanup efforts were underway. But, not being an abider, I walked a little further anyway. I'm glad I did, because I got a great (if slightly hazy) view of the Golden Gate Bridge. After returning to U's apartment via Geary Street, she was kind enough to shuttle me to the airport. Is it wrong that I'm already trying to figure out when I can make my next trip to California? Nothing wrong with five or six times in a year, right?

Let's have a ball

I had a great birthday weekend. Friday U joined me, piloting The Boat. We both managed to get some work done (her way more than me) and also Ate-a-Pita. Then Maudie and Trish arrived (yay!) and eventually we headed to Largo for my Jon Brion birthday show. We had enough people to fill both of our tables for four. I looked over the new menu items, but I'm still all about the Largo salad. Ditching an old standard dinner choice at Largo can be fraught with peril.

Jill Sobule opened for Jon, accompanied on most of her songs by Greg Leisz on pedal steel. It was my first time seeing either of them, and I wouldn't mind doing so again. Jon came on around the usual time - freshly back from England, according to Flanagan - and proceeded to play for about three hours without a break between sets. Happy birthday to me, indeed. U is, of course, the JB setlist queen, but I can mention some random highlights. Very early in the set, Jon gave us a little crash course and demonstration of all of his pedals and what they do, which I loved. I'm astoundingly clueless when it comes to gear, and Jon's nice, succinct summations of each pedal's function ("This one takes a sound this big and adds something this big down here") were very informative.

The first half of the set was, I believe, pretty much Jon's own stuff. I particularly adored the harmonica and toy piano (celeste?) version of "Knock Yourself Out". Then for the second half, Greg Leisz came back out on pedal steel, and Benmont Tench was called out to play piano. I was so happy to see Benmont. Favorite Benmont moments of the night: his solo during "I Don't Hurt Anymore"? Maybe? I can't remember now for sure, but I do know that I had a stupid grin on my face the whole time. Also, the part during another song (damn, I'm bad at this) when he started throwing some little celeste accents in along with his standard piano work. In the covers department, there was a lovely rendition of "It's All Over Now, Baby Blue", and a healthy dose of Beatles covers, including a sort of guitar riff medley by Jon. I also thoroughly enjoyed "Gigantic".

After the show, as we were leaving the club, we noticed a commotion a few doors down that was preventing us from walking to our car. "Hey, that ho-bag in pink. That's Paris Hilton," U said with a touch of horror. The ho-bag in pink stalked into a club, and we were able to pass.

Saturday's weather was absolutely gorgeous. We brunched at Hugo's, and then headed to the Getty Center. I thought the Getty was great: awesome views, impressive architecture, beautiful gardens, interesting water features, and of course, art. For free. I had no idea what special exhibitions were going on until we arrived, but one turned out to be paintings of Caspar David Friedrich and Gerhard Richter. Gerhard Richter is one of my favorite painters, so I was extremely pleased. There were also some excellent photography exhibitions. After an hour or two of art, we grabbed some drinks and spent a long time soaking up the perfect weather on a grassy slope overlooking the gardens. Children tossed paper airplanes and had rolling contests down the hill. I chose not to dwell on the fact that I'd be back in the Wisconsin winter the next day.

Saturday night, after some Persian/Irish ice cream, we saw ASSSSCAT at the UCB Theatre. Jello Biafra was the guest monologist, and he was fairly entertaining, if also fairly self-important. The improv was very funny. (I'm limbering up for the Second City marathon next month.) We finished up the night at an excellent cafe in Los Feliz, on Evonne's recommendation. Trish's friends joined us, and we hung around until closing time.

And then on Sunday I came back here and it was 40 degrees. The end!

I have cheated Father Time!

By flying to California on the day before my birthday, I have managed to remain 26 for two extra hours! Take that ... getting older! Yes, this will be my second birthday spent in sunny California. Specifically, sunny Los Angeles. With Jon Brion playing his only November Largo show on one's birthday, is there really a choice? No, there is not. I see friends, Persian ice cream, and a Largo salad in my future. And who knows what else!

Birthday summer

Between the end of June and the middle of August, three of my closest friends, both of my parents, and four of my nephews have birthdays. It's rough! Saturday marked the end of the birthday season for another year, with my nephew Nate's fifth birthday party. My sister threw the pirate-themed fête in her backyard, complete with a treasure hunt, eye patches, bags of loot, a treasure chest pinata, and pirate cake. The only incongrous element was a giant Scooby Doo moon bounce, though predictably the children didn't mind the breach of theme in the slightest. All in all it was a fun afternoon. My mom also managed to round up all seven of her grandchildren for a photo, which was actually quite a feat.

Speaking of the children of my sisters, my niece starts middle school in a couple of weeks. How did that happen? I basically know her as a child, but I'm looking forward to getting to know her better as an actual person. (You know what I mean.) I haven't had much opportunity, since I typically see her only briefly every couple of months. I need to find out if she has an email address.

Lists

I don't think I've made a good old fashioned list post in a long time. So, without further ado, here are some lists:

Mnemonics, Memory Devices, or Other School-Learned Phrases That Will Be in My Brain Forever:

• kingdom phylum class order family genus species
  
• y = mx + b
  
• first, outside, inside, last
  
• Mary's very eager mother just sat until night passed (Mercury Venus Earth Mars Jupiter Saturn Uranus Neptune Pluto)
  
• Every good boy does fine (EGBDF)
  
• Roy G. Biv (red orange yellow green blue indigo violet)
  
• Gee, Scott has nice cuffed pants (Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama)

Most Recent Stream-of-Consciousness Subjects I Looked Up on Wikipedia:

• diphtheria
  
• Laura Ingalls Wilder
  
• Thomas Pynchon
  
• Gravity's Rainbow
  
• Ten Commandments
  
• YHWH
  
• county seat
  
• Consenza
  
• Calabria
  
• urine
  
• Edmonton, Alberta
  
• white-collar
  
• The Magnificent Ambersons

Things My Nephew Wanted For His 10th Birthday Last Weekend:

• Spongebob Legos
  
• gold necklace
  
• purple satin Ninja mask

Mom for a day

Saturday afternoon was my twin nephews' third birthday party. This involved me shepherding young children around a gym for a good portion of the afternoon, and eventually holding week-old baby while her mom took a break. Not that it's never happened before, but twice people I didn't know assumed I was a mother. It's not an odd assumption - I'm the right age for a youngish mom with little kids. The odd thing is how people treat you when they assume you're with your child.

I'm not talking about discrimination. It's just a different world. I know I'm not telling those of you with children anything new, but it was so weird to have moms I didn't know approach me and exclaim over how cute "my" child was, and then spontaneously share anecdotes about their own kids like we were old friends. ("My youngest was a preemie, so tiny like your little one, and now she's in gymnastics here and we can't keep her still! I bet your daughter will be the same way.")

Maybe it wouldn't seem so strange if I lived closer to that world, but at this point I don't. At all. I visit my family a couple times a month, and am well versed in the ways of the children, but my life in Madison is very much adultcentric. I work at a company of young professionals, where the median age is something like 27. I live with a college friend, I keep nice things on low shelves and cleaning products in unlocked cabinets, none of my close friends have kids, I stay up until all hours, I go out when I want, I travel at a moment's notice. I am not a parent. So when someone assumes I am, my world view gets messed up for a little while. It turns my perspective around, and it's rather disorienting. ("My God, that could really be me right now.")

I don't think I really have a point. Just something I was thinking about today.

Emotional rollercoaster

Wow, today saw some dizzying highs and dismal lows, but it all turned out well in the end. Allow me to elaborate...

I was in Kenosha for the weekend for my "family birthday" and this afternoon my mom came up from the basement o' wonders ... with MY VINTAGE NINTENDO SYSTEM! I was so thrilled. However, my excitement was soon tempered by the fact that nary a controller could be found. Never fear! A little while later, we stumbled upon a bag containing not only the two controllers, but the gun, video and audio cables, power cord, and all of my old games. There were Marios 1, 2, and 3, Duck Hunt, Paperboy, Pinball, and Double Dribble, just waiting for me to play them. I took them back home with me.

Then, tragedy! I hooked everything up to my TV ... but it refused to work. I could get a purple screen, a sometimes blinking power light, and once I got a garbled Mario 3 welcome screen that froze up immediately. With great sadness, I had no choice but to give up on my old Nintendo as too old.

However. Later in the evening, I shared my tale of Nintendo woe with Sam. She suggested blowing into the games, which clearly - as any Nintendo veteran knows - had been my first course of action. Then she told me I should "crunch" the games into the box. "It'll work, trust me," she said. She gave a little more detail on the crunching maneuver, and I gave it a try. AND IT WORKED! VINTAGE NINTENDO IS MINE! I've crunched Mario 3 and Pinball so far, and they work like a charm. Thank you Sam, for saving the day!

Orange cranberry scones

Your Birthdate: November 17

You tend to find yourself lucky - both in business and in life. And while being wealthy is nice, you enjoy sharing your abundance with others. You put your luck to good use: you are very ambitious and goal oriented. Often times, you get over excited and take on more than you can manage. Your strength: Your ability to make your own luck Your weakness: Thinking you can do it all Your power color: Bronze Your power symbol: Half Moon Your power month: August

What Does Your Birth Date Mean?

That's ... not all that accurate, actually. Oh well. I'll be on the lookout for bronze half moons that make me powerful.

Orange cranberry scones are just one of the "dessert party" items that will be available tonight. Others include, but are not limited to: apple kringle, tiramisu, a lemon bar (yes, just one), chocolate chip cookies, and cheesecake. Mmmmmm. And everyone is invited to play with the Playmobil Butcher Shop.

Two more days

Until I turn 26, that is. It occurred to me that I have not been asked by a single person what I want for my birthday. This is fine with me, but a little unusual. I think my mom technically gave me a scarf and gloves a month or so ago, and last time I saw her she was trying to claim that something or other else was the other part of my birthday present. I already got the awesome 1942 Book of Etiquette from Peppin and Maureen because they couldn't wait. Beyond that ... I dunno. Either people are really inspired this year, or I'm not getting crap. I think we're having a dessert party on Thursday night though. Becky is going to make a cheesecake. Yay Becky!

Today I bought myself a present, I guess - Kicking Television. I could have waited for my birthday, but it was on sale at Best Buy (evil, corporate, whatever - it's also across the street from work) for $8 less than usual. Plus I had to take a look at the photo on the inside of the jacket. Haha. There I am. Awesome. Also, I got another of my birthday presents in late October, but I've restrained myself thus far in terms of playing with it ... it's so freaking awesome ...

The Playmobil Butcher Shop


It has little sausages! And a butcher knife! And a rotisserie!