28 is Great

Hello, folks! Sorry for the mad delay in posting. Here I am writing to you, officially one year older. 28 feels grand so far and, with the joyous, warm welcome from friends and family, both in Chicago and beyond, I think 28 promises to be a rollicking good time. The weekend of fun kicked off with my (“our” is the proper term, as she’s the office’s intern – but I adore her muchly and consider her my own personal intern) intern, Jessica, making of all things…FUNFETTI CUPCAKES. Dangerously delicious – we all celebrated by eating like, a billion of them. I then went home and had a lovely run with Banjo (a must after consuming so many scrumptious cupcakes), in the gorgeous Chicago lakefront sunshine, followed by (of course the requisite freshen up session) an outing to Portillo’s for hot dogs and the Blue Frog for karaoke with Mr. Mike Mason. The Blue Frog, also the site of my party on Saturday, is a freaking magical place. If you ever come to Chicago and you’re my friend, you will be dragged there. Ed from “The Bachelorette” has been recently spotted there (by Katie and myself, nary a few weeks ago) singing Elton John's “That’s Why They Call It the Blues,” and old men with very hair sprayed coifs croon sad old favorites, such as Kenny Roger’s “Lady” (Swoon). On this particular outing, an Indian man sang Chris DeBurgh’s “Lady in Red.” It’s karaoke moments such as those that make me believe that the Blue Frog truly is heaven.

Friday welcomed my best friend (and former college roommate and European traveling buddy) Amber and her wonderfully eccentric mother over to my apartment to meet Banjo, followed by a leisurely, very Parisian lunch of sweet and savory crepes at Bistrot Zinc. Amber’s recently engaged, so we gabbed about the wedding (which will likely follow a 1950’s or 1960’s ‘Dirty Dancing’ theme – Radness) and generally caught up. It was a gorgeous day in Chicago and we took Banjo to Washington Square Park to hunt squirrels and sniff the flowers. We then got gussied up in dresses and went out to dinner at Aura with her folks (there’s a lot of dining when things are being celebrated…), followed by blissful vegging out in our PJs watching “What Not to Wear.” These are the kinds of days/nights that I live for – no itinerary, excellent weather, comfortable company, and lovely food. BTW – if you ever go to Aura, I highly recommend their cocktail, the Tangerine Stinger, which is a glorious combination of tangerine juice, vodka, and pressed Ancho chilies. It has a nice bite to it and gave me a delightful buzz.

Before I get in to the specifics that made Saturday such a fantastic birthday, I want to thank all my pals and family for the calls, texts, emails, and general messages of love. I couldn’t have felt more fortunate! After canoodling with Banjo in the bed and sleeping in, we grabbed a great brunch and moseyed over to the beach to dip our toes in the water. After wading around for a bit, we realized that we needed some duds for the evening’s festivities and that our toesies were in serious need of some upkeep – so, off to Forever 21 and the nail salon we went, where we tried on completely skanky/unflattering dresses, and got out toes slicked with OPI’s Lincoln Park After Dark. Bliss! Fast forward to the Blue Frog Karaoke Party (some pics below – please note there were men at the party, but they didn’t sing. Only singers get photos, okay?). Ah, Chicago! You’ve proven to be the best city I have ever lived in – such wonderful sites, architecture, food, and people. With a gaggle of great pals, some very rowdy Saint Louis Cardinals fans (who sang a bang-up version of Nelly’s “Shake Ya Tail Featha,” and a whole lot of free-flowing booze, songs were sung (“Total Eclipse of the Heart,” “A Whole New World,” “Walk like an Egyptian,” “Push It” (I do not recommend this one for karaoke…); “Don’t Stop Believing;” “Friends in Low Places;” etc…), bodies were moving, and people were glowy with happiness and fun. A guy even dedicated a Creed song (“My Sacrifice,” if you must know) to our entire table. It was a great time and lots of unflattering pictures were taken (of me singing emotionally, especially). So, thank you to everyone who came out, sent well-wishes, or is just generally a kick ass person in life. I heart you!

(MORE PICS SHOULD BE HERE, BUT I'M HAVING TROUBLE POSTING THEM)

I ended up buying the teak coffee table (see below) from CL. My gosh, the people who sold it to me were LOVELY. Not only did they deliver it for nothing, but the woman (a very artsy, friendly gal) wrote me a follow-up email offering me her car anytime I needed it. The Midwest never fails to impress and hearten me with its general niceness. The table is exquisite and really pulls together the whole room. Banjo is not entirely sure what’s up with this wooden thing in the middle of her play space that she’s not allowed to lay/jump on (though she’s tried many times), but it’s quickly become an inextricable part of the room. To cement its place in my home, I’ve already started treating it like shit. All weekend, Amber and I put our feet and seltzer cans on it with abandon, and this very morning, I spilled blackberry jam on it. Through it all, it has maintained its luster. Hooray for mid-century Danish quality!