Thanks for thinking of me!

[jesse_the_k]

I had a lovely birthday yesterday. The weather started brisk and refreshing. We took a brief turn in the dog park, and Lucy ate nobody.

MyGuy gave me something I've always wanted: two radio-controlled wall clocks. One presides over the living room with dignity, while the other pours a steady data stream over the dining room table. Knowing the exact time makes me very happy.

As do prime numbers. Therefore I hope my 53rd year will be full of glee.

The first time MyGuy and I went out on a date was on my birthday in 1977. We married for love, and it's still in evidence. We napped in a bed with fresh sheets, and strolled out in the honey sunlight of a 70° afternoon.

I very slowly climbed the twenty-two steps to l'Étoile, which is rumored to be one of the best restaurants in the U.S.A. Frankly, I was disappointed.

We gave them a week's notice of gluten- & bovine-dairy free requirements, but they hadn't prepped an alternative menu in advance. When I asked about substitutions on one item, our server took 15 minutes to get an answer. I discovered my amuse bouche—truffle oil on unripe pears—affects me much like diesel fumes. The chicken had subtle flavors, as did the 4-mushroom ragout, but they overwhelmed each other. MyGuy got a roll, but naught for me (are rosemary scented rice cakes too much to hope for?) There were no GF desserts on the menu, but they did bring me two raspberries and two tiny slices of nectarine. Which were delicious: couldn't they have offered me a larger serving of that? Oh, the chairs were unpadded and the room so noisy I had to wear earplugs.

Next year, I'll take my flist out for designer tea: tastier and more fun.

Happily, our local Chocolate Shoppe ice cream is reliably wonderful.

And so, flist, what pins your happy-meter?
[Poll #1255219]

Comments

[redbird]

That L'Etoile couldn't handle your needs with a week's notice, and didn't want to admit it, is disappointing. I can see a restaurant looking at its menu and skills, and warning that they couldn't do anything interesting that was dairy- and gluten-free, but that if you really wanted to accompany a friend they could grill you a steak with just salt and pepper, or the like, but the point is that they should tell you, not drop the ball that way. I'd been thinking, idly, of going there some Wiscon, and it's just become less likely, despite the fact that I can eat all those things that are problematic for you.

[bibliofile.livejournal.com]

Hey, happy belated birthday.

Prime numbers are cool.