The Big Birthday Wrap Up And Ramble
Aug. 27th, 2001 02:16 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
penpusherYears ago, I bought a bottle of DP '85, thinking that if I had it, I would have a reason to drink it.
Today, that bottle sits in my fridge, still unopened. It's like the Ancient Mariner's Albatross, weighted around my neck.
The bottle came close to being opened once. My (then) friend, Tony, who was working with me on a project called "Supermodel Trading Cards," insisted that we open the bottle when we got Fabien Baron to be the art director for the project. Fabien was the creative director for Harper's Baazar magazine at the time, and had worked on such esoteric projects as Calvin Klein's ad campaigns, and Madonna's "Sex" book.
I broke the seal of the box, then I stopped and thought for a moment. I told Tony that this was not the time to celebrate, that we had only taken the first step and that we shouldn't count our "supermodels" before they get "carded." Tony was genuinely and bitterly disappointed.
Little did I know, several weeks later he would attempt to wrest the entire project out from under me, and made off with the whole thing!
That story ended with me sending apology notes to several fashion bigs, him going to card manufacturers and asking for a million dollars to fund the project, him getting laughed out of every office he entered and neither of us making a penny on what could have been a great idea.
But, back to the bottle. Yes, the bottle.
Truthfully, I originally got it because of a girl. I had a crush on this woman. No, let's be accurate. I had this crush on the image I had in my head of this woman. I met her in Central Park in the early summer on a picture perfect day. I danced with her before I even knew her name!
She was a dream girl from a personals ad: Ivy League educated, heading to law school, into the arts and seemed to have fun. Oh, and cute.
Of course, I didn't know she was dating a guy from "As The World Turns" at the time, nor did I know she was a freak... But, to be fair, I'm sure she must have thought me a maniac, so I suppose we wound up even.
Of course I became obsessed, even meeting her parents and attending her kid sister's birthday party. What a freak I was!
Anyway, I bought the bottle thinking that a celebration was right around the corner.
Was that ten years ago this coming New Year's Eve?
So, I had my birthday on Saturday. Traditionally, this is the most overlooked day of the year for me, because friends and even family tend to have the week off and go places or basically don't want to be bothered.
That's okay. I'm capable of making my own fun. I went to Central Park. Nike had a promotion which was a tie-in to the Arthur Ashe Kid's Day fun going on at the USTA Center in Flushing Meadow Park. I got a free dodge ball with the Nike "Play" logo on it.
They handed out hundreds of these balls, and I was just waiting for the world's largest game of dodge ball to break out. It didn't happen.
I treated myself to a very fine Big Nick's pizza and ate at a sidewalk table while watching episodes of "The Little Rascals" on a tv screen. And I got to see Suzy, my favorite waitress. The waitresses at Big Nick's have been there a LONG time. Suzy is so sweet! If you ever come to NYC, you have to have a Big Nick's pizza served to you by Suzy.
For dessert, I ventured south to my favorite restaurant: Veritas. I wrote a review of the place for a now defunct website which read:
With entrees that melt in your mouth ranging from a delectable salmon to a savory beef fillet, a dessert menu that features the out-of-body experience called simply chocolate soufflé and a wine list that reads like the Manhattan White Pages, Veritas is The Flatiron’s quiet and elegant must-do.
Unmentioned was the most wonderful and personable staff in the city... with a star attraction Philana, the bartender.
Phil and I worked together at one of the clubs I DJed at a couple of years ago. She is an amazing woman, and one day I'll have to tell you all about her.
Naturally, I ordered a chocolate soufflé for my b'day cake.
It comes with a side of vanilla ice cream... It's one of my two most favorite chocolate treats in New York... the other being a Frrrozen Hot Chocolate at Serendipity 3.
I always clean my plate when I order dessert there!
As is customary, people wind up talking about issues surrounding my book when I'm in earshot, and a couple, He, originally from Greece, and She, born in Sri Lanka and living in the States for 20 years were talking about issues dealing with generations.
I briefly chimed in about the concepts I was putting forward and both of them seemed to agree with what I was saying. I felt a bit better, since lately I've been getting more negative comments than positive. Well, at least that's how it seems to me, right now.
Phil didn't even know that it was my birthday, and I never tell her. I love seeing her so much! But, she's taken. And even if she wasn't, I'm not the guy for her. She's studying to be a doctor. She will be a fine one, indeed.
I left with my dodge ball in tow and climbed aboard a subway home.
I felt positive. Something good was going to happen. Even the moon was up in the sky, making my initial.
Will this be the year I get to pop the cork?
Today, that bottle sits in my fridge, still unopened. It's like the Ancient Mariner's Albatross, weighted around my neck.
The bottle came close to being opened once. My (then) friend, Tony, who was working with me on a project called "Supermodel Trading Cards," insisted that we open the bottle when we got Fabien Baron to be the art director for the project. Fabien was the creative director for Harper's Baazar magazine at the time, and had worked on such esoteric projects as Calvin Klein's ad campaigns, and Madonna's "Sex" book.
I broke the seal of the box, then I stopped and thought for a moment. I told Tony that this was not the time to celebrate, that we had only taken the first step and that we shouldn't count our "supermodels" before they get "carded." Tony was genuinely and bitterly disappointed.
Little did I know, several weeks later he would attempt to wrest the entire project out from under me, and made off with the whole thing!
That story ended with me sending apology notes to several fashion bigs, him going to card manufacturers and asking for a million dollars to fund the project, him getting laughed out of every office he entered and neither of us making a penny on what could have been a great idea.
But, back to the bottle. Yes, the bottle.
Truthfully, I originally got it because of a girl. I had a crush on this woman. No, let's be accurate. I had this crush on the image I had in my head of this woman. I met her in Central Park in the early summer on a picture perfect day. I danced with her before I even knew her name!
She was a dream girl from a personals ad: Ivy League educated, heading to law school, into the arts and seemed to have fun. Oh, and cute.
Of course, I didn't know she was dating a guy from "As The World Turns" at the time, nor did I know she was a freak... But, to be fair, I'm sure she must have thought me a maniac, so I suppose we wound up even.
Of course I became obsessed, even meeting her parents and attending her kid sister's birthday party. What a freak I was!
Anyway, I bought the bottle thinking that a celebration was right around the corner.
Was that ten years ago this coming New Year's Eve?
So, I had my birthday on Saturday. Traditionally, this is the most overlooked day of the year for me, because friends and even family tend to have the week off and go places or basically don't want to be bothered.
That's okay. I'm capable of making my own fun. I went to Central Park. Nike had a promotion which was a tie-in to the Arthur Ashe Kid's Day fun going on at the USTA Center in Flushing Meadow Park. I got a free dodge ball with the Nike "Play" logo on it.
They handed out hundreds of these balls, and I was just waiting for the world's largest game of dodge ball to break out. It didn't happen.
I treated myself to a very fine Big Nick's pizza and ate at a sidewalk table while watching episodes of "The Little Rascals" on a tv screen. And I got to see Suzy, my favorite waitress. The waitresses at Big Nick's have been there a LONG time. Suzy is so sweet! If you ever come to NYC, you have to have a Big Nick's pizza served to you by Suzy.
For dessert, I ventured south to my favorite restaurant: Veritas. I wrote a review of the place for a now defunct website which read:
With entrees that melt in your mouth ranging from a delectable salmon to a savory beef fillet, a dessert menu that features the out-of-body experience called simply chocolate soufflé and a wine list that reads like the Manhattan White Pages, Veritas is The Flatiron’s quiet and elegant must-do.
Unmentioned was the most wonderful and personable staff in the city... with a star attraction Philana, the bartender.
Phil and I worked together at one of the clubs I DJed at a couple of years ago. She is an amazing woman, and one day I'll have to tell you all about her.
Naturally, I ordered a chocolate soufflé for my b'day cake.
It comes with a side of vanilla ice cream... It's one of my two most favorite chocolate treats in New York... the other being a Frrrozen Hot Chocolate at Serendipity 3.
I always clean my plate when I order dessert there!
As is customary, people wind up talking about issues surrounding my book when I'm in earshot, and a couple, He, originally from Greece, and She, born in Sri Lanka and living in the States for 20 years were talking about issues dealing with generations.
I briefly chimed in about the concepts I was putting forward and both of them seemed to agree with what I was saying. I felt a bit better, since lately I've been getting more negative comments than positive. Well, at least that's how it seems to me, right now.
Phil didn't even know that it was my birthday, and I never tell her. I love seeing her so much! But, she's taken. And even if she wasn't, I'm not the guy for her. She's studying to be a doctor. She will be a fine one, indeed.
I left with my dodge ball in tow and climbed aboard a subway home.
I felt positive. Something good was going to happen. Even the moon was up in the sky, making my initial.
Will this be the year I get to pop the cork?
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no subject
Date: 2001-08-27 12:20 am (UTC)I hope you pop that cork this year, Deano! Sounds like you had a nice birthday and you're feeling positive! ;-)
Thanks, Doe!
Date: 2001-08-27 10:19 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2001-08-27 04:25 am (UTC)Thanks!
Date: 2001-08-27 09:50 am (UTC)my thoughts
Date: 2001-08-27 09:39 am (UTC)2. is it still strange to you that you can look back on something and realize it was ten years ago? i'm not very old, i know, but the stuff that happened to me ten years ago USED to be stuff that happened "when i was a kid" and now, it's become stuff that "happened ten years ago." it was such a shock to realize that, as of my last birthday, i'd been out on my own for ten years, out of high school for ten years, sexually active for ten years, friends with sean and palesa and mesha and stephanie for *over* ten years... etc. etc. ad nauseum.
3. regarding the bottle, i am of the personal opinion that you shouldn't wait another day to drink it. i've never been one to wait for an auspicious occasion to congratulate myself on a job well done. what if i died before i got a chance to celebrate? why postpone joy? it's kind of like considering yourself finally ready to have kids. is anyone ever really ready? can you ever be successful (ie. "ready") enough? so, i say, unless you are waiting for a specific person to give you permission to drink it (in which case, maybe it would never happen), you should give yourself permission and enjoy it. no one else will enjoy it as much as you will, i think. no one else ever enjoys the fruits of self-celebration as much as the self, or something.
4. I'm talking out my ass.
5. I'm coming to NYC next month, and maybe I will go eat pizza served by Suzy.
6. I am broke.
Re: my thoughts
Date: 2001-08-27 10:11 am (UTC)2) Yes, it's strange and annoying! I guess it's not so bad, but, it makes me think. I don't think I look *that* much different from a decade ago, but I am a completely different person inside. Well, not completely different, but I definitely have a better perspective on life.
3) It's a reasonable thought! I've alternately thought of either drinking it or pouring it down the drain! I'll probably wind up drinking it before 2002...
4) Not at all!
5) Cool! I have lots of cheap ideas to help make your trip more fun!
6) Traveling can do that to you!
no subject
Date: 2001-08-27 10:45 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2001-08-27 01:14 pm (UTC)Re:
Date: 2001-08-27 02:34 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2001-08-27 03:47 pm (UTC)Got any OE, Thunderbird or Colt 45? Maybe Billy Dee can put in an appearance.
Too bad they don't still make Champale.
Re: knocks 'em dead every time
Date: 2001-08-27 09:20 pm (UTC)HAPPY BIRTHDAY
I finally read The Rimes of the Ancient Mariners (is that the correct name?) last month, I was tired about always hearing about the Albatross bird/burden thing.
Happy happy birthday! You're birthday sounded great. For awhile I was cooking spaghetti every year for my friends - taking the responsibility for celebration out of their hands.
Also, I've got a bottle of Absinthe waiting for just the right moment to be opened...
cheers!
Re: HAPPY BIRTHDAY
Date: 2001-08-27 03:45 pm (UTC)Thanks for your wishes!