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I had a birthday party at Fillippi's. I invited about 25 of my friends.
I thought it would be odd to invite everyone I knew, as some people I've had relationships with that were stronger years ago, and I only talk with once a month. I thought it would be better to just have my closest friends (and also cheaper, as I was paying for everything). That was getting hard to do when a newer friend of mine bought a couple pitchers of beer. And Peg, who I worked with in radio in the early 90s, gave her boyfriend crap for wanted to order an expensive bottle of wine. We told them it was fine, and he tried to get up to go to the bar and get his own booze.
My girlfriend got a cake in Poway, that was made to look like the Jaguar XKE I had, with another cake underneath it that was the road. The thing weighed about 50 pounds.
I joked with one friend, saying "The pistons aren't edible." She asked what the pistons were and one of my male friends, knowing that I don't know crap about cars, said "He doesn't even know what pistons are."
The antipasto salads and pastas were easy enough to order for the large group, but we had no clue how many pizzas to get. We ordered six, figuring we could get more if we needed them. As it was, we ended up having more than we needed and give to people as they were leaving.
The last time I had a party for myself, I was turning 30. I insisted that none of my friends bring me gifts. And the bash cost me a over a thousand bucks with all the food, booze, and 60s decorations.
I figured it would sound silly to even bring up gifts, or whether or not to bring them. A friend of mine just got invited to a wedding, and there were three different cards enclosed on where the couple was registered; as well as a notice asking that you pay for your own meal, since they didn't have a lot of money. To me, you don't throw a party (or wedding), unless you have the money to do it.
My friends gave me some cool stuff. Andy gave me these Cuban cigars in a cedar box. Some newer friends of mine scored me a few cigars and a pipe. John said, "I figured you're old enough now that you can start smoking a pipe." I laughed and said "It's the smallest pipe I've ever seen." He looked down at it and said "Well...it's a gateway pipe."
Another friend gave me a gift bag and wrote on it that "40 is the new 6." Which means in a few years, I'll start wetting the bed again.
He put in a snow globe that's incredible. I once bought a snow globe from someone that had the car crash scene from Fargo. This has a photo of the characters in Easy Ride, which is cool, since the movie came out the year I was born.
It also has stars and American flags that float around when you shake it.
One friend gave me a gift bag with Chargers items.
I got a few gift cards.
The funniest thing I got was from Peg. She knows I write a column for Autograph Magazine, and she gave me a few signed items. One of them was a thank you card written by Jay Leno to a famous musician that was recently on the show. I'm guessing she swiped it when she was backstage last year. All of that stuff in a Tonight Show with Jay Leno gift bag, with some guitar picks from the last AC/DC concert she was backstage at.
I was surprised I was able to hold multiple conversations (I'm guessing my friends aren't surprised; I've been told I can talk a lot).
At one table, there was an interesting debate on movies. At one point, they were talking about an XKE that was in the movie Harold & Maude. I said, "I don't remember an XKE in that. Are you sure?" As it was explained that it was cut up and turned into a hearse, I was really confused. I said, "They did all that going to White Castle?"
I thought they were talking about Harold & Kumar, not Harold & Maude. I then debated why everyone likes that story, since it's so implausable. I mean, a 17-year-old having a relationship with a 70-year-old Ruth Gordon? I don't think a teenager would have an affair with a 40-year-old Ruth Gordon. Now, had they made it Sophia Loren, or some woman that age that still looked attractive...
But whatever. Everyone loves the movie, so maybe I'm missing something.
We took the cake home, with the car now being torn in half, giving me a glimpse as to what it would look like if I was ever t-boned.
The red paint, which was that harder frosting used in decorative cakes, tastes horrible.
But at least it looked cool.
I had a birthday party at Fillippi's. I invited about 25 of my friends.
I thought it would be odd to invite everyone I knew, as some people I've had relationships with that were stronger years ago, and I only talk with once a month. I thought it would be better to just have my closest friends (and also cheaper, as I was paying for everything). That was getting hard to do when a newer friend of mine bought a couple pitchers of beer. And Peg, who I worked with in radio in the early 90s, gave her boyfriend crap for wanted to order an expensive bottle of wine. We told them it was fine, and he tried to get up to go to the bar and get his own booze.
My girlfriend got a cake in Poway, that was made to look like the Jaguar XKE I had, with another cake underneath it that was the road. The thing weighed about 50 pounds.
I joked with one friend, saying "The pistons aren't edible." She asked what the pistons were and one of my male friends, knowing that I don't know crap about cars, said "He doesn't even know what pistons are."
The antipasto salads and pastas were easy enough to order for the large group, but we had no clue how many pizzas to get. We ordered six, figuring we could get more if we needed them. As it was, we ended up having more than we needed and give to people as they were leaving.
The last time I had a party for myself, I was turning 30. I insisted that none of my friends bring me gifts. And the bash cost me a over a thousand bucks with all the food, booze, and 60s decorations.
I figured it would sound silly to even bring up gifts, or whether or not to bring them. A friend of mine just got invited to a wedding, and there were three different cards enclosed on where the couple was registered; as well as a notice asking that you pay for your own meal, since they didn't have a lot of money. To me, you don't throw a party (or wedding), unless you have the money to do it.
My friends gave me some cool stuff. Andy gave me these Cuban cigars in a cedar box. Some newer friends of mine scored me a few cigars and a pipe. John said, "I figured you're old enough now that you can start smoking a pipe." I laughed and said "It's the smallest pipe I've ever seen." He looked down at it and said "Well...it's a gateway pipe."
Another friend gave me a gift bag and wrote on it that "40 is the new 6." Which means in a few years, I'll start wetting the bed again.
He put in a snow globe that's incredible. I once bought a snow globe from someone that had the car crash scene from Fargo. This has a photo of the characters in Easy Ride, which is cool, since the movie came out the year I was born.
It also has stars and American flags that float around when you shake it.
One friend gave me a gift bag with Chargers items.
I got a few gift cards.
The funniest thing I got was from Peg. She knows I write a column for Autograph Magazine, and she gave me a few signed items. One of them was a thank you card written by Jay Leno to a famous musician that was recently on the show. I'm guessing she swiped it when she was backstage last year. All of that stuff in a Tonight Show with Jay Leno gift bag, with some guitar picks from the last AC/DC concert she was backstage at.
I was surprised I was able to hold multiple conversations (I'm guessing my friends aren't surprised; I've been told I can talk a lot).
At one table, there was an interesting debate on movies. At one point, they were talking about an XKE that was in the movie Harold & Maude. I said, "I don't remember an XKE in that. Are you sure?" As it was explained that it was cut up and turned into a hearse, I was really confused. I said, "They did all that going to White Castle?"
I thought they were talking about Harold & Kumar, not Harold & Maude. I then debated why everyone likes that story, since it's so implausable. I mean, a 17-year-old having a relationship with a 70-year-old Ruth Gordon? I don't think a teenager would have an affair with a 40-year-old Ruth Gordon. Now, had they made it Sophia Loren, or some woman that age that still looked attractive...
But whatever. Everyone loves the movie, so maybe I'm missing something.
We took the cake home, with the car now being torn in half, giving me a glimpse as to what it would look like if I was ever t-boned.
The red paint, which was that harder frosting used in decorative cakes, tastes horrible.
But at least it looked cool.