Brad's Birthday Party...
Well, I got over my agoraphobia long enough to head down to San Francisco with Rachel last Saturday to attend a birthday party for our friend Brad. If you ever need health insurance, either for yourself, your family, or for a small to medium sized company, you can't go wrong with Brad's company, All Pointe Insurance. He took good care of all of us at CommTech.
We had a great time. I spent the morning making cookies and a Cookie Monster cutout...
Brad asked me to make my Triple Chocolate Disaster Cookies, and you know, since it was his birthday and all, how could I say 'no.' Plus I'm always a bit flattered when someone asks me to make something for them that I've made before. More on the cookies and the Cookie Monster cutout later in this post.
We first dropped Jake off for a visit with his Dad. We then headed on over to our old house on Western. As we sat there, pulled over, reminiscing about the great times and wedding we had there, our old neighbors and landlords pulled up. So we chatted with them for a bit. Then we had dinner at Velasco's to the sounds of live music. Then it was down the 101, over the bridge, out 19th avenue and then on the phone with Brad to talk us in. That's because I forgot the directions at home and MapQuest was just spitting out a bunch of inane twists and turns that made no sense on my cell phone.
Well, we finally got there, and it was great to see Brad again. It had been far too long. It was a little weird, though, because he was the only person we knew at the party. There was nobody there from previous parties - no Tattoo & Tequila people, no SSG people, and not even any Shinteki people. And instead of chips and salsa, Tombstone pizza, beer, and too sweet margaritas, it was vegetarian lasagna, some sort of crab dip, and many bottles of really good wine. It was like...well, like a grown up party. Hell, there was even a plate of cheese, crackers, grapes and figs. F-ing FIGS!!! Figs, I tell you! It was weird. Add to that the place was the nicest house I've ever been inside of in San Francisco, aside from my Aunt Ellen and Uncle Bob's house. It's tastefully decorated, nice furniture, views, a deck and a hot tub, to boot. It was a little weird.
Brad was the same old Brad, and that's great news, but it was like he was living in a whole new world. Rachel and I felt a little strange, and I commented to her that despite the clothes she'd picked out for me to wear, I wasn't quite hip enough for this scene. But I think that was just me being self conscious and not getting out enough because before long I found myself talking with everybody and having a good time. Rachel did the same, and she's not as comfortable meeting new people as I am. So we started having fun.
Now, I'm not sure where the wheels came off, but the evening definitely devolved.
This great friendly human and cute as a button young woman with a smile too big for her face, a voice too big for her size, and wonderful rhythm guitar skills showed up with her Martin. Martin being her guitar, not Shinteki Martin who showed up later. Her name is Genna and she plays and sings in a band called "Fiction Like Candy." At some point, I realized that I had forgotten my camera in the car and put my coat on to go get it. A woman named Elise caught me by the arm and said, "You might want to wait a little while before you leave because Genna is going to play for us." I explained that I was just going to get my camera.
And with my camera, I took this picture...
and this one...
and this one...
I didn't take this one...
But I did take this...
and this...
and this...
What? It's a picture of the fire pit and she just happened to be standing there. OK, she was actually showing us how her jeans got wet when she was down by the hot tub. You know, the hot tub, where a lot of people ended up. And then somebody decided it was too hot in the hot tub, much like James Brown's celebrity hot tub party. Well, too hot for people who had consumed so much fine wine, anyway. So somebody got the hose out. And from there, well, things just got sillier - like I said, they devolved. Somewhere, the wheels came off, somewhere between the figs and the 35th bottle of wine.
I did a little bottle counting as we cleaned up a bit before leaving.
Before that, we all listened politely to Genna's performance. And then the dogs started getting silly - tear assing around with raw hide bones. And then the lights went out and the bass started thumping. Rachel and I went outside for a while and I tended the fire in the fire pit. And eventually Martin and another Rachel we knew and Nick, Brad's old roommate showed up. And we had a good long talk about this and that and politics and conspiracies and foreign policy and literature. And this cool guy named, I think Mason, put on The Gourds version of Gin And Juice and I danced and sang along. 'Cuz it's hard bein' Snoop D-O double 'G.' I think he was also responsible for the boob picture above. Although he says she took the picture herself. And then came the original Snoop Dogg version and I dug it a bit before we headed back out to the fire pit, pausing only to catch a few minutes of Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon playing on Brad's wall sized screen.
You know, for atmosphere.
The thing is, when I first got there, I felt like a total dork with my plate of cookies and Cookie Monster cutout. It would have fit right in back at Tattoo and Tequila II or even III. But I stuck it out and made some new friends (Genna's my newest MySpace buddy) and heard some great music and we ended up having a lot of fun. And by the 4:00 in the morning or so, it had gotten a little weirder than I was prepared for. And I really enjoyed keeping my wits about me as the evening got more and more interesting.
I think it was about perfect for me between 12:45 and 3:15. The cookie monster cutout didn't seem so silly once all of the figs were gone.
And we ended up giving a ride home to a woman who arrived in some stunning shoes and left barefoot wearing a robe. And she gave us perfect directions to get back on 280 and head home.
Which we did.
And Rachel promptly fell asleep.
The drive home was uneventful save for some jerk of a Napa Sheriff who tailgated me and almost rear ended me when I slowed to 40 - after the sign that said "Reduced Speed Ahead" and the next one that said "SPEED LIMIT 40 mph." I signaled and pulled over to either get it over with (I had two glasses of wine over the course of the evening and a lot of water) or let him pass. He passed and flashed his lights trying to say either, "Thanks for pulling over kind citizen," or "You're lucky I didn't pull you over asshole." I flashed my brights at him trying to say either, "You're welcome, officer, thanks for keeping us safe," or "Fuck you, you're just the kind of asshole cop my Dad and Godfather warned me about."
He kept on going, so I think we can assume the former sentiment in both cases.
But what about that weird picture of the lights?
I'm glad you asked! Check this out...
How cool is that? That's a light up hula hoop. And I want one. And I'm a Taurus. (Hint hint)
(Update - nevermind on the hula hoop. It's $220 plus shipping. I mean, it's cool, but not really that cool.)
So yeah, we had a blast. And Brad's party gave me, what I think, is a great idea. We have lots of talented friends. I want to throw an all day sort of creative festival of a party. Maybe Genna would come. And maybe I could get Ted to play and sing, too. And maybe they'd even play a duet. And maybe Betsy could bring some prints to display. And Paul could do card tricks and play cricket or beat everyone at pool. Oh! Or maybe Karaoke? And Lauren could do weird contortionist things that make me giggle a little. I don't think Laurie could fit her piano in her truck, but maybe we could find a keyboard? And If Scott and Kimra have moved back by then, they could play any of several instruments. And we'll have the party here so I don't have to drive and can drink just enough beer to think I can play and sing or something.
Thoughts on this idea?
We had a great time. I spent the morning making cookies and a Cookie Monster cutout...
Brad asked me to make my Triple Chocolate Disaster Cookies, and you know, since it was his birthday and all, how could I say 'no.' Plus I'm always a bit flattered when someone asks me to make something for them that I've made before. More on the cookies and the Cookie Monster cutout later in this post.
We first dropped Jake off for a visit with his Dad. We then headed on over to our old house on Western. As we sat there, pulled over, reminiscing about the great times and wedding we had there, our old neighbors and landlords pulled up. So we chatted with them for a bit. Then we had dinner at Velasco's to the sounds of live music. Then it was down the 101, over the bridge, out 19th avenue and then on the phone with Brad to talk us in. That's because I forgot the directions at home and MapQuest was just spitting out a bunch of inane twists and turns that made no sense on my cell phone.
Well, we finally got there, and it was great to see Brad again. It had been far too long. It was a little weird, though, because he was the only person we knew at the party. There was nobody there from previous parties - no Tattoo & Tequila people, no SSG people, and not even any Shinteki people. And instead of chips and salsa, Tombstone pizza, beer, and too sweet margaritas, it was vegetarian lasagna, some sort of crab dip, and many bottles of really good wine. It was like...well, like a grown up party. Hell, there was even a plate of cheese, crackers, grapes and figs. F-ing FIGS!!! Figs, I tell you! It was weird. Add to that the place was the nicest house I've ever been inside of in San Francisco, aside from my Aunt Ellen and Uncle Bob's house. It's tastefully decorated, nice furniture, views, a deck and a hot tub, to boot. It was a little weird.
Brad was the same old Brad, and that's great news, but it was like he was living in a whole new world. Rachel and I felt a little strange, and I commented to her that despite the clothes she'd picked out for me to wear, I wasn't quite hip enough for this scene. But I think that was just me being self conscious and not getting out enough because before long I found myself talking with everybody and having a good time. Rachel did the same, and she's not as comfortable meeting new people as I am. So we started having fun.
Now, I'm not sure where the wheels came off, but the evening definitely devolved.
This great friendly human and cute as a button young woman with a smile too big for her face, a voice too big for her size, and wonderful rhythm guitar skills showed up with her Martin. Martin being her guitar, not Shinteki Martin who showed up later. Her name is Genna and she plays and sings in a band called "Fiction Like Candy." At some point, I realized that I had forgotten my camera in the car and put my coat on to go get it. A woman named Elise caught me by the arm and said, "You might want to wait a little while before you leave because Genna is going to play for us." I explained that I was just going to get my camera.
And with my camera, I took this picture...
and this one...
and this one...
I didn't take this one...
But I did take this...
and this...
and this...
What? It's a picture of the fire pit and she just happened to be standing there. OK, she was actually showing us how her jeans got wet when she was down by the hot tub. You know, the hot tub, where a lot of people ended up. And then somebody decided it was too hot in the hot tub, much like James Brown's celebrity hot tub party. Well, too hot for people who had consumed so much fine wine, anyway. So somebody got the hose out. And from there, well, things just got sillier - like I said, they devolved. Somewhere, the wheels came off, somewhere between the figs and the 35th bottle of wine.
I did a little bottle counting as we cleaned up a bit before leaving.
Before that, we all listened politely to Genna's performance. And then the dogs started getting silly - tear assing around with raw hide bones. And then the lights went out and the bass started thumping. Rachel and I went outside for a while and I tended the fire in the fire pit. And eventually Martin and another Rachel we knew and Nick, Brad's old roommate showed up. And we had a good long talk about this and that and politics and conspiracies and foreign policy and literature. And this cool guy named, I think Mason, put on The Gourds version of Gin And Juice and I danced and sang along. 'Cuz it's hard bein' Snoop D-O double 'G.' I think he was also responsible for the boob picture above. Although he says she took the picture herself. And then came the original Snoop Dogg version and I dug it a bit before we headed back out to the fire pit, pausing only to catch a few minutes of Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon playing on Brad's wall sized screen.
You know, for atmosphere.
The thing is, when I first got there, I felt like a total dork with my plate of cookies and Cookie Monster cutout. It would have fit right in back at Tattoo and Tequila II or even III. But I stuck it out and made some new friends (Genna's my newest MySpace buddy) and heard some great music and we ended up having a lot of fun. And by the 4:00 in the morning or so, it had gotten a little weirder than I was prepared for. And I really enjoyed keeping my wits about me as the evening got more and more interesting.
I think it was about perfect for me between 12:45 and 3:15. The cookie monster cutout didn't seem so silly once all of the figs were gone.
And we ended up giving a ride home to a woman who arrived in some stunning shoes and left barefoot wearing a robe. And she gave us perfect directions to get back on 280 and head home.
Which we did.
And Rachel promptly fell asleep.
The drive home was uneventful save for some jerk of a Napa Sheriff who tailgated me and almost rear ended me when I slowed to 40 - after the sign that said "Reduced Speed Ahead" and the next one that said "SPEED LIMIT 40 mph." I signaled and pulled over to either get it over with (I had two glasses of wine over the course of the evening and a lot of water) or let him pass. He passed and flashed his lights trying to say either, "Thanks for pulling over kind citizen," or "You're lucky I didn't pull you over asshole." I flashed my brights at him trying to say either, "You're welcome, officer, thanks for keeping us safe," or "Fuck you, you're just the kind of asshole cop my Dad and Godfather warned me about."
He kept on going, so I think we can assume the former sentiment in both cases.
But what about that weird picture of the lights?
I'm glad you asked! Check this out...
How cool is that? That's a light up hula hoop. And I want one. And I'm a Taurus. (Hint hint)
(Update - nevermind on the hula hoop. It's $220 plus shipping. I mean, it's cool, but not really that cool.)
So yeah, we had a blast. And Brad's party gave me, what I think, is a great idea. We have lots of talented friends. I want to throw an all day sort of creative festival of a party. Maybe Genna would come. And maybe I could get Ted to play and sing, too. And maybe they'd even play a duet. And maybe Betsy could bring some prints to display. And Paul could do card tricks and play cricket or beat everyone at pool. Oh! Or maybe Karaoke? And Lauren could do weird contortionist things that make me giggle a little. I don't think Laurie could fit her piano in her truck, but maybe we could find a keyboard? And If Scott and Kimra have moved back by then, they could play any of several instruments. And we'll have the party here so I don't have to drive and can drink just enough beer to think I can play and sing or something.
Thoughts on this idea?
posted by Eric Soderstrom at 8:19 PM
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