Tag Archives: dinner

Birthday Twin Dinner (or Probably The Last Birthday Celebration This Year)

Posted on August 30, 2023 | 1 comment

I only have a few birthday traditions that I do every year, and one that I’ve been doing for years now is my dinner at Truxton’s with my friend (and birthday twin) Joanna. We’ve been doing this dinner for over a decade now, and even though things have changed over time, we still celebrate with their birthday deal.

The deal was a free entree and dessert when we started doing our birthday dinners. That allowed us to have a totally free dinner and we basically tipped what the cost of the dinner would have been. After a few years, the deal changed to $20 off your meal, which was $40 for us since we both had $20 to spend. We have tried to do a free dinner with that deal, but it became more of a hassle to try to figure it out. So now, we just get an appetizer to share, an entree for each of us, and a dessert to share. It’s not free, but it’s pretty cheap. And we can both tip $20 (which is almost the amount of the cost of the dinner) and feel like we are getting a great deal.

The original restaurant is over by LAX, so that’s where we started going for the birthday deal. But once they opened a location in Santa Monica, we switched to there because it was easier for both of us to get to. And that was our plan again this year. For whatever reason, I felt the need to look at the menu the day we were supposed to go and I’m so glad that I did. Because there was an issue with the lease for the Santa Monica location and it had to close shortly after we were there last year. If I hadn’t looked, we would have driven there for dinner and had no idea that wasn’t an option anymore. So I let Joanna know that we would have to switch back to the location by LAX. And going forward, we might adjust our tradition to be a lunch or brunch because it was crazy for both of us to get there with traffic.

But the traffic was worth it so we could have our birthday meal. And even though I know we both try to meet up more often than our birthday and cheesecake traditions, we are both busy and never seem to be able to plan a lot of other hangouts. So having these traditions something we make sure we do our best to keep up really helps us have regular hangouts/check-ins with each other.

We both knew what we wanted to eat quickly, so we were able to put in our order and focus more on our catch-up. And as it’s been the last several times, most of what we discussed was about our dating lives and our condos. And Joanna gave me some great ideas for the closet in my bedroom which I have been wanting to change up, so I’m glad we had our random chat as always.

And since the focus was on catching up, I also didn’t think too much about taking photos of our food. But I did get a photo of the dessert we split. We had this apple tart in the past and it’s always been good. And the waiter knew that it was both of our birthdays because we let him know in advance about us using the birthday deal, so he put 2 candles in it for us! I think this was the only birthday thing I had with a candle in it this year. It was really the perfect way to end the meal.

Because we went to a different location this time, our dinner was a bit later than normal so we were done later than I was planning. But we did this dinner on a night when I didn’t have to be up too early the next morning so it was ok. And it was worth it to get our birthday dinner. I think both of us would do whatever we can in order to make this dinner happen. Even during the height of the pandemic, we still found a way to have our dinner together even if we were eating in a park instead of the restaurant.

I’m seriously so lucky that we’ve kept this tradition going for as long as we have and that we both see it as such a great way for us to maintain our friendship even with our crazy schedules!

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Exactly The Musical I Needed To See (or I Wasn’t Expecting To Like This Show This Much)

Posted on January 11, 2023 | Comments Off on Exactly The Musical I Needed To See (or I Wasn’t Expecting To Like This Show This Much)

I’m about halfway through my musical season, which is surprising since it feels like it just started. But this season is split up with a few other shows, so I don’t have another show until this summer when we have 3 shows within 3 months. So I’ll be missing seeing shows for a little while, but I think that the show we got to see this past weekend will make up for that because I really loved the show we saw.

It’s always a tradition to go to Wood & Vine before the show, and we continued that again. We lucked out because we have been having a lot of storms here in LA and Sunday was a break from the rain. So we were able to sit outside and stay warm under a heat lamp. And it was nice to have some outside time when I feel like I’ve been cooped up inside for a while. As always, the food was so delicious and amazing. We ordered a lot of things that we had before, but they have all been favorites of ours.

I was also smarter before going out that night and didn’t eat too much for breakfast or lunch so I had room for all the good food. Everything was really fulfilling and perfect for the stormy weather we have been going through.

And our show that night was one that was supposed to be in the 2019-2020 season that was canceled. But I’m glad the show decided to set up a tour again and they were a part of this season.

I love the movie “Mean Girls” and I was excited to see how it was adapted into a musical. I’ve seen some adaptations that I loved and some that weren’t as great, but I had high hopes for this one. Plus, I knew that the show would be very high-energy and silly so I was looking forward to that.

But what I didn’t expect was how much I would love the show. I thought the cast was so talented and the songs were very funny. Even when there was a technical glitch and the show had to take a very long pause, they were able to come back with as much energy and enthusiasm as before. And you couldn’t tell that they had to make some last-minute staging changes to accommodate the technical issues.

The story is pretty much the same as the movie and there are also a lot of the same characters. But there is a new level to the story with the songs. And I feel like the songs were so many different genres so they almost felt like a collective or a mix tape than something written by a single person. I really loved that. And the sets were almost all using screens, which is something I normally don’t love but it really worked with the show. It allowed the staging to quickly switch from one location to another and it kept the show moving quickly.

I really needed to see a show like Mean Girls. It was so fun and a nice escape from everything else going on in the world and in my life. And that’s why I love having season tickets for musicals. Normally, they aren’t just entertaining but a way to remove myself from any stress and worries in my life and I can just enjoy that moment in time and be really connected to a show. It will be weird that I might not have another musical until the summer, but maybe I’ll find something else to go and check out in the meantime!

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Not Exactly A Musical Night (or Continuing To Be Spoiled With Our Pre-Show Dinners)

Posted on November 8, 2022 | Comments Off on Not Exactly A Musical Night (or Continuing To Be Spoiled With Our Pre-Show Dinners)

My friend Jodi and I had our second show this past weekend for the new Pantages season. As I’ve said so many times, I’m glad that I have been able to continue going to shows and that I have a friend who wanted to join me this time. And I’m happy that the shows are back at the Pantages because that means it’s even easier for us to go to dinner at my favorite place, Wood & Vine. I was going there for dinner before the shows at the Dolby, but it was a bit more rushed since we had to drive over to the theater instead of just walking across the street. And honestly, going to Wood & Vine feels like such a part of the plan with going to a show and I miss it if I’m not there for my pre-show dinner.

Jodi and I decided to try a few new things for our dinner. We decided that we wanted to get the crab cakes again because they were so incredible the last time we had them. And we got the popcorn shrimp since that was something I had never had before there. And for our main entree, we got the burger (which came as 2 burgers) because I don’t think I’ve had that before either.

And as always, we got spoiled at dinner. We were sent an order of the ahi tartare, which was another thing that I had never had before there. And I don’t know if I’ve had ahi tartare before in general.

Every single bite was delicious. I’m glad their menu isn’t bigger because I’ve never had something there that I don’t like and it would be hard to decide what to get if they had more options. I have loved everything I’ve had and I always want to get some of my favorites as well as try new things as they change up their menu. And this was a perfect combination of things I had tried before and new things. I especially loved the garlic fries that came with the burger. They were perfectly garlicky!

And again, we were sent dessert even though we didn’t order it. Often, we are sent the butterscotch dessert because that is my favorite. But I think I have a new favorite now. We were sent the bread and butter pudding and I can’t explain how luxurious and delicious it was.

It wasn’t too sweet, which I loved. And it melted in your mouth. Honestly, if I didn’t have to be up early the next morning, I would have debated about us going back to Wood & Vine after the show for a second dessert! It was that good! And I think I will have to have that again the next time we have dinner there.

After being spoiled by so much good food, it was time to walk across the street to go to the show. I usually refer to the season as the musical season, but this was not a musical. I can’t remember another show that was a part of the regular season that wasn’t a musical, so it’s not something that happens regularly. But this season, they decided to make one of the shows a regular play.

Like so many people, I’m familiar with the story of “To Kill A Mockingbird”. I read the book in school and I remember my class watching the movie after we read the book. It’s been years since I’ve read or watched it, but I still knew the main plot points of the story. I had heard that there were a few changes made, but I didn’t think I’d recognize them since it had been so long since I had revisited the story.

I think the play was very well done. The performances were incredible and the plot followed the story that I remembered for the most part. They did some back and forth with the storytelling that I don’t remember seeing before, but it was easy enough to follow when we were moving through the timeline or when we were watching the action take place versus having the characters tell the story. And I liked how they used the set to change from location to location because it was done very simply and kept the focus on the story (sometimes musicals have sets that are super flashy and can be something I focus on a bit too much).

It was an interesting change of pace compared to seeing musicals, but I think it was a good addition to the season. And while Jodi and I were at dinner, we realized that our next show isn’t for about 2 months. And then after that, we have a 4-month break between shows! So we are going to try to see if there are any other random shows we want to go to since we are having so much fun getting to hang out on a regular basis and have entertaining nights out! But even if we don’t figure out another show to see before January, I’m so excited about what we have coming up and I know that this season is going to continue to be amazing!

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An Almost Free Dinner (or Continuing The Birthday Tradition)

Posted on August 18, 2022 | Comments Off on An Almost Free Dinner (or Continuing The Birthday Tradition)

I haven’t done a lot for my birthday this year and I don’t know if I’ll be doing much else. As I said before, I’m ok not celebrating as much as I used to, especially with how busy I’ve been with work and other things. But I do still like to celebrate and continue traditions when I can. And the tradition I look forward to the most is going to Truxton’s with my birthday twin, Joanna. We aren’t exactly sure how long we’ve been doing this, but we know it’s been at least 11 years, which is a pretty long time. And while we rarely can do our dinner on our actual birthday, we get it done within our birthday month.

2 years ago, we ordered take-out and had our dinner as a picnic since that was the safest way for us to have a meal. Last year, we were able to return to the restaurant and eat there. And this year, we continued with having dinner at the restaurant. If either of us felt uneasy about doing that, I know we could have done a picnic again. But I’m glad that eating there was an option for us. And because we went on a random weeknight, there was almost nobody else there so that helped us feel like things were a bit safer.

As we have done since the birthday deal changed to a dollar amount and not just a free entree and free dessert, we knew we’d order an appetizer to split, entrees for each of us, and a dessert to split. In the past, our meals have been completely free. And if we only ordered entrees we could have done that. But it’s ok that it’s not free anymore because we still get a total of $40 off of our bill, which is usually almost the entire thing.

We knew we wanted to have monkey bread to start, so we ordered that and ate it while we looked at the menu to figure out what else we wanted for dinner.

And once we ordered the rest of our meal, it was time for our catch-up chat. We had seen each other a few months ago when she helped me put together my bed. So there wasn’t as much to catch up on as there normally is when we get together for dinner. But we both had updates on our lives and our homes. When she was helping me with the bed, the renovation wasn’t done so I updated her on that. And she’s also going to do a renovation on her place so she updated me on that progress with planning everything and picking out what she wants. And as always, we had some gossip about dating and other random things that have been going on in our lives.

For our dinners, I had a burger and she had nachos. We’ve only had delicious meals at Truxton’s and we both really enjoyed our meals. But since we knew we’d be having dessert, we tried to save some room and not fill up too much.

We do like to give our server a heads up that we are using their birthday club coupons since sometimes they have to do the bill a different way (lately, they split the bill and then apply one coupon to each half to let us use both). So when our dessert was brought out, they put candles on it and sang Happy Birthday to us!

We got a new dessert, and I think we picked the perfect thing! It was a lemon cake with strawberry sorbet on top. It wasn’t too heavy, which we needed after a big meal, and it was so flavorful! I’m glad that’s what we picked because I think some of our favorite desserts would have been just too much for us.

Our meal wasn’t free, but it was pretty much under $10 for each of us so we could leave a really big tip. What we’ve been doing lately is tipping $20 each since that’s what our coupons take off the bill. So we spend the same amount we would have without the coupons, but that also allows us to leave a nice tip for our server and hopefully make their day a bit better. I love that we have always paid it forward because I know sometimes people who get a discounted meal tip on the discounted amount. We like to make up for that.

We were both really full after dinner, but it was worth it. This is one of the best birthday traditions and I think my birthday wouldn’t have felt complete without it. And since I rarely go out for dinner these days, it feels like a real treat.

I’m not sure if Joanna and I will be able to hang out again before our traditional cheesecake outing around the new year, but even if we don’t see each other until then we know we will have another great catch-up when we have our next meal!

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Getting One Nice Dinner In With Family (or Finally Bringing My Parents To My Favorite LA Restaurant)

Posted on May 18, 2022 | Comments Off on Getting One Nice Dinner In With Family (or Finally Bringing My Parents To My Favorite LA Restaurant)

When my parents come to LA to visit me, we don’t usually do fancy meals. We do tend to eat out at restaurants since my old kitchen was so small and tough to cook in (hopefully I can start making more meals for my parents in my nice kitchen!), but we don’t go out to anything super nice. We’ve done a lot of simple meals like ordering salads or going to a cafe or casual restaurant. But it’s rare for us to go out for a nice meal since we are usually busy with other things.

But for my parents’ trip this time, I knew we wouldn’t have a ton of things we had to get done so I decided we should go out for a nicer dinner one night. And I wanted to finally take them to my favorite LA restaurant: Wood & Vine.

I have only gone to Wood & Vine for dinner once that wasn’t a time I was also going to a musical and had a specific time that I had to be out of there. So I knew we’d be able to relax and enjoy our time there. And I also knew that we would probably be spoiled because the manager Wally always sends over things for me to try that either I didn’t order or aren’t on the menu yet.

We went to dinner on Saturday on the earlier side, so we didn’t have too much traffic to deal with. And we lucked out into a parking meter that was just a block away, so we didn’t have to pay too much for parking. And since we made our reservation for when they opened, there weren’t a lot of people there when we arrived and we had the patio to ourselves!

We ended up ordering most of what I got the last time I was there. We had the spinach dip, caesar salad, risotto, and short rib. All of those were amazing and just as delicious as they always are. And my parents agreed that everything was so good!

And we got one off the menu dish sent over for us to try. It was oxtail served over potatoes and had spicy greens on top of it.

I don’t know if I’ve had oxtail before, I don’t remember having it but I might just not remember. But this was delicious (but a bit spicy for me) and I am so glad I got to try it because I don’t know if I would have gotten it if I saw it on the menu.

And even though we didn’t order dessert, we were sent some. We got this incredible dessert plate with ice cream sandwiches, chocolate mousse cake, and ice cream.

We were all so full with everything we ordered, but of course, there is always some extra room for dessert so we tried a little bit of everything on the plate. We all were so full and probably ate too much, but it was worth it! I always love everything I get at Wood & Vine, and this time was no exception. And I’m so happy my parents enjoyed it as much as I did.

I don’t get a lot of chances to share some of my favorite LA things with my family, so I’m glad we got to do this when they were here this past time and have a nice celebratory dinner after doing all the random work we did in my new place.

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Getting Spoiled At Dinner (or Another Musical Night)

Posted on May 5, 2022 | Comments Off on Getting Spoiled At Dinner (or Another Musical Night)

I’ve been so happy ever since the musical season started up again. It’s been a bit weird to be in big crowds, but I’m getting more used to it and I’m grateful that the theater has some protocols in place to try to keep people safe. And since I don’t really go out a ton right now (which I know I need to change), I do try to make these nights at the show fun nights out.

The rest of the delayed 2020 season is still happening for my tickets and I still have a few more shows to go before the next season. And I’m thinking I might try to get tickets for the next season with a different friend since Dani won’t be in LA for the shows. But I have time to think about that for a bit. For now, I’m just enjoying each show I get to see.

This past weekend, the musical was “Tootsie”. I am pretty familiar with the movie and while it is a bit problematic I was curious what they would do for the musical. I asked around to see who wanted to take Dani’s ticket, and my friend Jodi was able to come with me again. And since we had so much fun at Wood & Vine the last time we went, we decided to meet up for dinner before the show again!

I am very lucky that I have gotten to know the manager at Wood & Vine and he tends to spoil me and my friends whenever we are there for dinner. I never assume that will happen, but every time I’m there for dinner there are more things that I want to try than I know I have room for in my stomach.

We decided to order the spinach and artichoke dip, short rib, and vegetable risotto. But we were surprised when we started getting a bunch of food that we didn’t order along with what we did order.

We were sent some things from the upcoming menu to try out before they were available. We tried a fried chicken slider on a charcoal bun, a beet and goat cheese salad, and a summer peach and candied nuts salad. They were all so good! The slider was spicy but not too overpowering. I don’t really like beets, but the dressing on the beet salad was delicious. And honestly, the best thing was the peach salad. It was so fresh and flavorful. I hope it’s on the menu soon because I want to make sure I order it again the next time I’m there! I’ve never had anything bad at Wood & Vine, but I swear they keep getting better and better and I’m loving all the new things I’ve been able to try!

After dinner, we headed over to the show at the Dolby. I do miss the shows being at the Pantages because it’s so much easier just to walk across the street after dinner instead of having to drive to a second location. Normally, it’s not a big deal. But this time, we were just hitting all the lights wrong and there was a line of traffic to get into the parking lot. This ended up being the first time I’ve ever been late for a show. We arrived just as the doors closed and we were able to watch the opening number from the TVs in the lobby so we didn’t completely miss the beginning. But it was frustrating that we missed seeing it from our seats. But as soon as that first number was done, we were able to go to our seats and enjoy the rest of the show from there.

They did make some changes to the show that went into some of the problematic things from the movie. But it still has some things that made me cringe a bit. It’s not a bad show, but it just has a few moments that really took me out of enjoying it because it didn’t sit right with me. But the performances were really good, especially with some of the supporting actors. I loved the actor who played the roommate. He was so funny and did a great job with the lines he had that called out the situation of the show.

I think Jodi and I felt the same about the show. It wasn’t bad, but it felt a bit dated because of some of the themes. But we still both enjoyed it. And going to a show still feels like a treat to me.

I have a few more shows to go for sure, and then I’ll have to decide what to do about the next season. But I think even if I don’t get the full season next time, there are friends who want to see some of the shows and I’m getting better about coordinating things so I don’t miss seeing things I want to go to. And even if I only go to a handful of shows in the next season, I know I will appreciate each one I get to go to because they really are special nights for me.

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“The Band’s Visit” (or A Two Show Weekend)

Posted on December 8, 2021 | Comments Off on “The Band’s Visit” (or A Two Show Weekend)

Going to a show these days is a rare event and feels like a special treat. And to have 2 shows in the same weekend would have been a rarity even before the pandemic! So to have two shows this past weekend was something extraordinary for me!

I didn’t plan to have a show to go to on both Saturday and Sunday, but that’s how my weekend this past weekend ended up going. I had “The Enigmatist” on Saturday and on Sunday I had my musical at the Dolby! This time the show was “The Band’s Visit” and my friend Dani wasn’t able to go with me so my friend Jodi took the extra ticket. I hadn’t seen Jodi since before the pandemic, so I was so excited to see her. And since we hadn’t seen each other in so long, we decided to also go to dinner before the show. And to me, the best (and really only) place for a pre-show dinner is to go to Wood & Vine.

I had been to Wood & Vine once since the pandemic when I was there right after they reopened. But that was just to have dinner and not before a show. And before the last show I went to, I didn’t go to dinner since I went to the show alone. So this was my first dinner and a show night in a long time!

And as always, the food didn’t disappoint at all! We started with the spinach and artichoke dip. And then the manager recommended we have the short ribs and the sea bass, so that’s exactly what we got!

Honestly, I know I say this every time, but the food is just incredible! I’ve never had anything less than spectacular and I wish I could try more things each time. But it’s also so good and I’m always so full when I leave.

But even after being full from dinner, there is always room for dessert. And we were treated to my favorite butterscotch dessert as well as donuts!

We had made our dinner reservations pretty early so we would have time to enjoy the meal and catch up, and I’m glad we did that. It was so nice not to feel super rushed. And because the musicals right now are at the Dolby and not the Pantages, we had to drive to the show (instead of just walking across the street). But it was an easy enough drive and we just parked in the garage there, so before we knew it we were at our seats!

I really didn’t know much about this show and neither did Jodi. The main thing I knew was that it won the Tony for best musical. And we were told to think of it more as a play with songs versus a musical. And I think that was the perfect description. It was a slice of life show. While it didn’t have any crazy or elaborate musical numbers, it was a really beautiful show with a great message. And the cast was so talented.

And just like when I saw “My Fair Lady”, just being in a theater seeing a musical made my day. I know how lucky I am that I get to do this and I have a theater that is doing what they can to keep people safe. Everyone there is vaccinated and required to wear a mask at all times. And they are very strict with those rules, which I appreciate.

The show was a bit shorter than I expected, but it also didn’t have an intermission. And after the show, I drove Jodi back over to where she parked her car since we didn’t want to both have to spend money on parking at the theater.

I think almost any night I get to see a show is an amazing night. But this time, I got to have an awesome dinner and a great show. Plus I got to catch up with a friend in person who I hadn’t seen in 2 years. Honestly, this was one of the best nights I’ve had in a long time and it made me feel so grateful for what I have and what I get to do.

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Returning To A Birthday Tradition (or A Rare Meal Out)

Posted on August 17, 2021 | Comments Off on Returning To A Birthday Tradition (or A Rare Meal Out)

I’ve had my birthday tradition of eating at Truxton’s with my birthday twin for a long time now. I say every year how much I love having this tradition of going to dinner with Joanna because we always set aside this time for each other each year. We don’t necessarily get to hang out as much as we’d like to over the year, but this time is sacred and we will always make sure we find a way to have this dinner.

Even last year when things were so unclear with the pandemic, we made it happen. We might have had a picnic instead of what we were used to and we were both being so cautious and careful about everything we did, but we still had our dinner. And at that point last year, I was seeing so few people that any real face-to-face time was special to me.

So even though things have taken a turn for the slightly worse with the pandemic recently, we knew we would still have our birthday dinner. We didn’t decide until the day of what the final plan would be. For me, I really did want to eat there if possible, but I wasn’t sure how Joanna would feel about it. But since they had tables outside that were set pretty far apart from each other, we agreed that eating there would be nice and safe enough.

We ended up arriving at the restaurant within about a minute of each other, and since there was nobody sitting outside at the time, we were able to be seated quickly. Since the pandemic, I’ve rarely gone to eat at a restaurant. I’ve gotten take out and delivery, but this dinner was only the 3rd time since March of 2020 that I have sat down at a restaurant and had a meal. Even if this wasn’t our birthday dinner, that alone would have made this feel so special.

Even though we have been going to Truxton’s for a long time, we always still see what is on the menu in case there are new things. And I’m not sure if they changed things earlier but last year it was a limited menu or if these were more recent changes, but there were so many new items on the menu this time!

We pretty much always get monkey bread to start and then share a dessert, plus we each get our own entrees. But this time, there was a new burrata grilled cheese sandwich that sounded so good to both of us! So we decided we’d get 2 sandwich meals and then each take half. So we got the grilled cheese and the turkey avocado club (which is a sandwich that I have gotten before and really like).

And I’m glad we split the sandwiches because the grilled cheese was so good but so rich! I never could have the entire thing myself!

Besides enjoying a nice dinner out and having a good meal, of course I loved getting to catch up with Joanna too. Both of us haven’t had a ton going on because of how we are being careful, but there is always something to update each other on. I was filling her in on some random dating stories that happened recently and she was telling me about a trip she was going to go on soon. Despite all the craziness going on in the world around us, this dinner was a nice sense of normalcy that I feel I don’t get to have that often. And while I can’t escape thinking about everything happening in the world, it was so nice to have just a bit of time to focus on something else that is more positive.

And yes, it was almost a free meal. The completely free meal isn’t really an option for us, but that’s ok. It ended up being about $5 each after our discount and we each left $20 (so our server got a $30 tip). The meal was beyond worth the $20 each!

And considering that our last 2 traditions (our birthday last year and cheesecake around the new year) had to be done in an unusual way, getting to have this almost normal dinner tradition was really one of those things that made me hopeful and grateful that more normal things might be coming soon.

I have no clue if by the end of this year or the beginning of next year things will be normal enough for us to have our cheesecake dinner the way we are used to. Worst case, we find another way to do it like we did the last time. But at least for our birthday dinner, we did get to return to an almost normal way of us celebrating.

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Default ThumbnailBirthday Twin Tradition (or An Almost Free Meal) Default ThumbnailA Socially Distant Picnic (or Still Having One Birthday Tradition) Default ThumbnailAn Almost Free Meal (or Amazing Food And Crazy Dating Stories) Default ThumbnailContinuing The Birthday Celebrations (or A Birthday Twin Adventure) Default ThumbnailAlmost Free Birthday Dinner (or Spending My Birthday With My Birthday Twin) Default ThumbnailBelated Birthday Dinner (or We Don’t Mind It’s Not Totally Free Anymore)

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Feeling Normal and Less Anxious (or Sorry I Keep Writing About The Same Thing)

Posted on May 7, 2021 | Comments Off on Feeling Normal and Less Anxious (or Sorry I Keep Writing About The Same Thing)

A year ago when the pandemic started, I worried so much about what I would blog about. I wondered if I would have to cut back on how many days I’d have posts to go live. I wondered if every post would be the same and I’d have nothing to write about. I’m still surprised that I was able to maintain my regular blogging schedule even at the worst points of the pandemic.

But what I didn’t think about as much is how often I would write about things being normal again and how happy it makes me. Maybe it’s because things shutting down was such a shock that it seemed so different and the idea of things coming back seemed normal and boring. But I feel like I’m constantly writing about how happy I am as things come back into my life and things start to feel more like my life before.

Of course, I’m still being very cautious about what I do and where I go. I do have some anxiety as I go into a new place or am around a new person because I have to judge how safe things are. I know I’m pretty safe between being fully vaccinated and staying masked (except the few moments I am not masked in certain places). But I still need to be careful with my own safety and the safety of those around me.

But that anxiety about staying safe is easing as I get to do more things in my life. It’s not that I forget to be anxious or I don’t care. But my anxiety isn’t the primary emotion in my life anymore. I have other things to focus on so my mental health is in a much better place. My baseline isn’t where it was before, but it’s much closer to that than how low I was feeling during the worst of it. And as I add more and more back into my life, my baseline is getting to a better place.

I think having Orangetheory back into my life is a big thing that has made me feel better about everything. That routine and that workout helps me in so many ways. Even though it’s still tough to struggle with things I didn’t struggle with before, I’m feeling so much better about myself. I don’t even mind that I have to wake up so early to go to class. I’ve always appreciated Orangetheory and what it did for my body and mind, but I appreciate it at a whole new level now. And as I go to each class, I notice that working out in the studio is helping me feel better and better. I’m sure at some point that will level off, but for now it’s making a huge difference in my life.

Going out to eat was another big thing that has helped make me feel more normal and less anxious. This was a little harder for me to do since going out to eat means you aren’t wearing a mask. But going to Wood & Vine felt a lot safer than so many places I’ve been going in the past year. I knew I could trust the management and staff to be doing the right things to keep people safe, and I was right. I have seen some restaurants doing outdoor dining and the tables seem really close together. But Wood & Vine really was careful with how they set up the space, even when that meant they couldn’t have as many people there as they wanted.

Just going out to eat with a friend felt so normal and even though we were very aware of things, it also allowed us to forget that we were still in a pandemic for a little bit of time. And having any time where the pandemic isn’t dominating my thoughts is a nice escape. I spent far too long since last year thinking of nothing but my safety and health. And just like how Orangetheory is helping my mental health, having another focus is doing the same. Going out to eat is going to have to be a rare treat because I do want to be careful how much I go out, but it’s nice that it’s an option again in my life.

And even my dating life is starting to feel a bit more normal again! I’m still doing some video/virtual dates, but meeting up in person is getting a bit easier to do. Coffee dates are much easier now than they were for most of last year. I feel safer hanging out outside with someone new. Being on a date without a mask is still something I think I’m only ok with if the other person is vaccinated (and most people who are vaccinated are happy to show their vaccination cards to prove it) and there are still not a lot of options to have creative dates. But as things reopen again, there will be more places I can go on dates. And hopefully, just like with so much else, things will continue to feel safer for me and I won’t be as worried about my health.

My life is still not fully back to normal, but in the past month I have been able to have a lot of things back. And I’ve been feeling more calm and relaxed and home, which is having a lot of positive effects. I’m able to sleep better. I’m more focused. I am enjoying silly little things again. I feel like the doom and gloom feeling is still in the background, but it’s not taking over my life. And I needed this happiness back.

Just like with so many other posts where I have written about things being closer to normal, I had no idea how much I needed this until I had it. I knew I wasn’t doing great last year, but I had no clue how bad it had gotten for me until it got better. And I’m trying to stay hopeful that it is only going to continue to get better from now on.

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A Return To Wood & Vine (or Feeling Even More Like Things Are Normal)

Posted on May 6, 2021 | Comments Off on A Return To Wood & Vine (or Feeling Even More Like Things Are Normal)

There are so many things that I haven’t been able to do for the past year. Sometimes it’s because I didn’t feel safe doing them and sometimes it’s because the place was closed or there was no way to get there. But recently, things are starting to slowly open up and I am feeling a bit safer about going out and not being just in my own little bubble at home. And one of the things that I haven’t really been able to do in the past year was to go out to dinner at a restaurant.

I’ve gotten takeout and delivery from restaurants, but I haven’t been going to restaurants to eat there. I know so many places have outdoor seating and have even been able to expand their seating to fit more people, it’s just something I haven’t done. But when I got an email from the manager at Wood & Vine that they were going to reopen, I knew I had to make a reservation to eat there!

Wood & Vine had been closed since things shut down. Even though they have a great patio space, they decided to stay closed until they knew that they could make it safe for both the guests and the staff. I really did respect that choice. If they had opened before I felt safe to go back, I would have supported them by buying a gift certificate or getting take out if they had offered it. But the timing worked out perfectly for me being fully vaccinated and their new opening date. So of course, I was going to go!

My friend Dani came with me since she and I were usually there together before a show at the Pantages. The theater isn’t open yet (right now, it’s looking like they will be back in October), but I was excited to have a nice dinner out at a restaurant I love and making that the main event of the evening.

While Wood & Vine was closed, they did some renovations on the restaurant. We were seated on the patio and they did a beautiful job making it look amazing! And even though it meant they had to reduce the number of seats available, they really made sure that the tables were at least 6 feet apart to keep everyone safe.

We made our reservation for right after they opened since neither of us mind eating on the earlier side. Plus, we knew we were in for a great meal and didn’t want to feel rushed.

The menu has changed a bit since they closed. There were still a lot of favorites that we recognized, but there were some delicious-sounding new things too. And they currently have a welcome back special that includes a drink, fish tacos, short ribs, and dessert. While the special sounded great, Dani and I decided to pick a few things out from the menu.

We ended up getting more food than we ordered because the manager sent some things over to us! We had ordered the fried ricotta, spinach and artichoke dip, short ribs, and scallops. And we were also sent over the fish tacos and 3 different desserts! We were so spoiled!

Everything was delicious. Even just writing about it now is making me crave the food again! I wish I was a better writer so I could describe the food better. But it was perfectly cooked and with the perfect spices to make each bite so full of flavor. And all the desserts were so luxurious. The butterscotch is something we’ve had many times before and it was just as good as I remembered it. And the mousse and poundcake were so chocolately. I was so full after dinner, but it was beyond worth it.

And it wasn’t just the food that was amazing. You could tell how happy all the staff is to be back. I know that people were ready to get back to work, but you can tell that they are happy that things are safer now than if they had opened up sooner. And knowing how happy they are made me feel much better about going to dinner. If I go out to dinner any time soon, I think I might try to make it at Wood & Vine even though it’s not super close to me. I love being able to support a restaurant that really does care about its customers and staff.

And of course, throughout dinner we got to chat with the manager, Wally. Getting to catch up with him was amazing and he was telling us all about the renovations to the space and the changes to the menu. You could tell how proud he was that the restaurant was open again. And while we were there, we could see that all the customers were just as excited to be there for dinner as we were.

Wood & Vine has been a regular part of my routine for so long, and it was wonderful to be able to have that back in my life too.

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