Monday, March 16, 2009

Another year older

It's a funny thing to say that my birthday kind of snuck up on me this year because, well, the date never changes.  My friends and DC had actually been asking me what restaurant to go to and what I wanted to do for weeks leading up to it (a Friday this year, no less), but I couldn't think of any place, and I could think of only one thing that I really wanted  to do: go apartment hunting (more on this in anther post).

msngiftDC surprised me by actually starting off on the day before my birthday, leaving this cute succulent for me to find after work.  He even cut little hearts out and taped them to the vase (awww...)!  You can't see it from the photo, but the top leaves are variegated green and white, with pink tips: so cute!    I'd been wanting a succulent for a while, so it was the perfect gift.

Then, on the day itself (March 6) he presented me with various gifts throughout, when we took breaks from apartment searching.  I was totally spoiled!

One of the gifts was a little stuffed teddy bear, from where he works, which says, "Someone at ***** loves me." Cheesy, also but totally adorable!

neverlost

Later in the afternoon I opened yet another couple of gifts: a light and a compass, both suitable for my keychain.  No longer will I have to carry my heavy mini Maglight in my bag!  And I will always know what direction I'm going, which will be especially useful in Orange County because I'm always, always lost there.  But DC's reason for gifting them to me was to prepare me for camping!  We'll see, friend, we'll see...

camilos

These types of everyday gifts are the best ones for me because I get to use the gift and, in turn, think of the gift-giver, on a daily basis. But moreover, they're items I wouldn't necessarily go out and buy for myself.  So: I'm very grateful.

In the evening we went to Camilo's in Eagle Rock: a place I'd heard of and been meaning to try, but hadn't gotten around to yet.  It was a nice treat!  I liked the decor of the place (we sat in a cozy corner, near the faux fireplace?), service was good, and we had an excellent, romantic meal.  I ordered a penne dish and went on a limb to eat the olives and red peppers in the dish as much as possible; DC had the evening's fish special, and declared it, "Excellent."

selfgift

During the apartment hunt I requested a pit stop at the local yarn store (LYS) because we were just a couple blocks away.  I picked up a couple self-birthday treats (but really, I was redeeming a store credit that I'd had for nearly a year).  The spring issue of Interweave knits is one of the best I've seen in a while; I like the cover sweater, the ruffle halter, a shrug/sweater, and the shawls featured (sorry I don't recall any of the names).  The yarn is a laceweight cotton made by Araucnia, out of which I plan to knit a summer scarf/shawl.

Over the weekend we had dinner at the izakaya side of Shin Sen Gumi in Fountain Valley, another place I'd seen but never eaten at.  Despite the LONG wait (though pehaps typical for SoCal), I had a good meal with good friends.

Here are a couple of other gifts I received this year, which I totally love.  From my BFF Myko: beer, a purse, and an ecobag (she knows me so well)!  And from Jaxs, a set of napkins and some salve (from Anthopologie, a treat!).

mykogift   bdaynaps


The following Monday during our family dinner, Mom prepared a special dish to celebrate both my brother and me.  It was nice to end such a delightful and busy weekend with an intimate, home-cooked meal.


One year, I'll love myself enough to throw me a large party and invite a lot of people.  I've given myself until 35 to do that.  In the meantime, I'm entirely happy with a birthday celebration like the one I just had.  Thanks, friends and fam, for the company, gifts, food, and lovin'!

3 comments:

  1. Sounds like a wonderful birthday!

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  2. [...] 16 06 2009 Remember the yarn that I got for myself on my birthday?  It’s been through several iterations of summery [...]

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  3. [...] over plants and planting these past few months.  DC started me off with a potfull of succulents on my birthday, which I left sitting precariously on a narrow window ledge and proceeded to knock off.  Poor [...]

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