So, Set 'Em Up, Joe?

Over It

Birthdays can be exhausting. Not that I am complaining.  I really do like all the attention, but I am also glad to have it done with for this year and to get back to my quiet, mundane life which consists of basically doing what I want, when I want. Other than a bothersome medical appointment, my only other appointment for the rest of this week is a massage on Thursday. How bad is that?

Route 66

Ah, let the birthday celebrations commence as I head toward Route 66.  How did I get so old, and where did all the years go? Last weekend I celebrated in Lincoln with my very own cupcake, which John helped me blow out. There were wonderful gifts, magazine subscriptions that I had requested, but the best gift was watching John play his first soccer game of the season.

Last night Bill and Sue came over for cocktails on the deck and then we were off to La Gare, one of my favorite restaurants.  Champagne started us off and then I had Caesar salad, chateaubriand with the most delectable bernaise sauce, assorted vegies, crispy potatoes and chocolate mousse, with a candle stuck in it, for dessert. Totally stuffed, we headed home. Fabulous meal!

Lunch at Sweet River Saloon with Peter, Dick and Mary will happen tomorrow.  I am thinking Cobb Salad, but a check of the menu will determine my final choice.  One thing for sure: after filling myself with beef last night, I won't be choosing a burger. I've had my red meat "fix" for a few weeks. Finally, there's a small 45er party on Monday, and that should be it for the start of the year long journey on Route 66. I hope it's a smooth trip. No bumps, please.

What Lesson Plan?

Eight years ago.  Everyone remembers where they were and what they were doing.  Having just watched the horrific images on my tv screen, I got into my car to drive to Strawberry School, not knowing what else to do.  Kind of  like the day Kennedy was shot and I tried to go to my class in Berkeley, in a daze. Of course, there was no class and then I really didn't know what to do.  This was different, however,  because speculation was rife; I remember hearing news reports that the Golden Gate Bridge was the next target. So I drove to school. My principal rushed into my classroom, wringing hands, and muttered, "What do we say to the kids?" Not knowing the best path to take, I said that I thought we should reassure them and give them as normal a day as possible. So that's what I did, and it seemed a good way to go. However, one 6th grade teacher decided to show the live news broadcasts replaying ad nauseum the hijacked plane crashing into the twin tower and accompanied, of course, by broadcasters' dire guesses, misinformation, and hyperbole. I thought that was a mistake, but her argument was that it was history in the making, a valid point. Everyone was struggling with how to respond. There was no lesson plan for 9/11.

Dysfunction Junction

Crossing the Golden Gate has always taken my breath away, and hitting the bridge was just the beginning of a day full of delight. The first stop was lunch at the Daily Grille on Geary where a crunchy BLT accompanied by a Bloody Mary hit the spot. Then we were off to the Curran to see August: Osage County starring Estelle Parsons. From the moment the curtain went up, I was awestruck. The Westons, the onstage family, made my Parsons Drive family look like The Ozzie and Harriet Show. Booze, pills, foul language, incest, pedophilia, actual fisticuffs amidst thrown dishes made for an amazingly entertaining afternoon. Family dysfunction comes in degrees, and the Westons were hot, hot, hot.

5-1=4

She lived with me for 21 years, and now she is gone. Higbee, named after my good friend. Kind of an ordinary cat, affectionate but haughty, and more independent than most felines are. Maybe that's why she lasted for 21 years when my other cats, and there were so many, returned to the earth, ashes sprinkled lovingly in the yard. This morning it became clear to me that her time was up, and I had to play god and take her to the vet to be put down. The right thing, I know; but it feels empty, different around here tonight. Great cat. She'll be missed. And now there are four: Ruby, Zorro, Cleo, and Winnie. Well, OK. Me, too.

Gimme an F

I went to see Taking Woodstock today. What an event that was, and how I wish I had been there for the experience, though I don't think I'd have been loving the slushy mud too much. It was