The day o' the birth

Thanks to me, the boys, my in-laws and a vacation day from work, I think T had a terrific  birthday. He romped with the boys, devoured cinnamon rolls, mounted an enormously heavy vise on his work station in the garage, went to the gym, putzed, read, and lazed. We then spontaneously decided to see a matinee of American Hustle and then commenced the beer crawl at St. Arnold's on Jefferson.

It was hoppin' and I dare say we felt marginally old. I ordered two steins of brew and some frites (terrific frites sauce, St. A) as T maneuvered into a tiny spot we could share.

He was underwhelmed by American Hustle which I felt was further evidence for never reading reviews before seeing any film. I didn't think it was amazing either BUT I also didn't have outsized expectations based on the pomp and praise of critics I don't know. I just think going in blind, so the speak, makes for a purer viewing experience. The acting in AH was excellent but the story felt long and fairly ludicrous at times. I believe the film would have benefited from some tightening in focus. Christian Bale is a phenomenal actor. Truly, I think he and Daniel Day Lewis are absolutely incredible. Meryl Streep too.

Anyway, we headed off and walked over to B Too, another Belgian beer-heavy spot recommended by my friend, Kim, who still goes out as regularly and energetically as an 18 year old. Impressive. Thank you, Kim. At B Too, I moved to wine but T found a Belgian tripel he'd not yet tasted (this is getting to be a harder and harder feat) and we decided to have dinner. T ordered rabbit with prunes and onions while I opted for the beet salad with yogurt, pistachios and mint and then the Wafel van Kreeft, or lobster waffle.

Average food but a fun time. I had four spots planned, but when T said he'd had a great time and did I want to instead go home and put on PJs and watch a movie, I said amen, brother (boo hiss: I still feel fairly dreadful; headache was blazing by this point). I slept for nearly twelve hours and feel inordinately lucky to have about 36 hours left in the "off-duty" column. Think we'll see another movie today, and otherwise, I hope to be LA-ZY.