Life 2.1

Technically B-Squared’s birthday is today but since Big Metal and she had a conference to attend in San Antonio this weekend (leaving today) we celebrated last night.

Big Metal and I concocted a plan to surprise her with a celebration. Under the guise of a “low-key” dinner at a local dining establishment, we told her that I would pick them both up around 9ish. In reality, we were having a few people over for a backyard birthday bash, complete with white Christmas lights and candles for ambiance. So while B-Squared was upstairs in her pad, getting ready for her aforementioned dinner, I was downstairs, commandeering the neighbor’s kitchen as my staging area. I had prepped most everything at my house…the (Mexican-themed) menu was as follows:

Blackbean and Corn Salad (one of the fine recipes I stole from my mother prior to leaving CA)
Chicken and Shrimp skewered with an assortment of bell peppers and onions, thrown on the BBQ.
Refried beans

And of course, an assortment of cake-flavored desserts. With candles.

So while I skewered our dinner downstairs, P-Money sneaked over and decorated for us. In the meantime, I was cutting the deadline to “pick the girls up” close and B-Squared was getting low blood sugar and was wondering what the heck was taking me so long (understandable since we told I had left the house a while ago and still “wasn’t” there)

Finally, we were ready and B-Squared came down and to her surprise (hooray!) she saw the backyard and we told her of our change in plans.

We ended up having a lovely time, despite it being in the high 80s at 10pm and while it maybe wasn’t quite the low-key dinner that we had told B-Squared it would be, I think she enjoyed herself. We laughed a good bit and ate and drank and stared longingly at cupcakes and puffin cake (definition: not a particular type of cake [eg Bundt cake] but a cake, shaped and decorated like a puffin. And delicious-flavored. Thank you LB and B-Dub!)

And thus the pictoral evidence of the party begins:

2 Comments | In: Life in the boot-shaped state | tags: birthday, cake, surprise. | #

Today is my birthday lucky me!

OK, technically it was yesterday but I was far too busy celebrating to blog. Sorry, it’s the truth.

Celebrations began on Friday night, with my first trip to the Quarter as a New Orleanian. We dined at Crescent City Brewhouse, which was a great mix of New Orleans cuisine at a decent price. After the meal, our group, of about 17 or 18, headed to Pat O’Brien’s, because you haven’t had a trip to the Quarter without going to Pat O’s, so I have been told.

Anne bought me my very first hurricane, which was tasty but a little too sweet. But I could totally see why those are dangerous drinks!

After we hung around the patio area for a bit, the cold got to us and we headed inside to the Piano Bar, where they had two pianos going and they were singing/playing songs everyone could sing along with, which is always eventful in an establishment that serves adult beverages!

Since it was only Friday night, I had to wait until midnight to officially turn 26, and as it crept closer and closer, we all kept checking our watches. Finally, with 10 seconds left, the countdown to midnight (and 26) began.

Post-Piano Bar, our group headed to Goldmine to dance up a storm, which Nancy and I did quite well. I also learned that I tend to dance with my middle finger down. Who knew?

It was definitely a top night!

I followed it up with whipping up a snackin cake for myself on Saturday. The only thing is that it totally goes against my whole trying to eat healthy, because I’m left with a giant sheet cake and I live by myself. And to make matters worse, it’s called snackin’ cake because we all just cut off a little piece as we go, thinking it’s not that much, when really we should have just had one whole piece, because after you realize how many “small pieces” you hacked off as a snack so many times, it’s way more than one piece anyway.

{sigh} It’s ok. I’ll just have to take one for the team and eat it. No sense in wasting perfectly good chocolate cake!

6 Comments | In: Social Adventures | tags: birthday, Bourbon Street, cake, French Quarter. | #