Table For One

So I decided to go over to the Italian place across the street.
The hostess, a young, pretty girl who was going for the vaguely non-conformist look with her dark, blocky, attention-getting Elvis Costello glasses and pseudo-hippie belly-baring shirt greeted me and looked to either side of me in hopes of getting a good look at the rest of my party.
She seemed nonplussed by the fact that I was “my party” and suggested that I might want to sit at the bar.
Even though I knew I’d be inconveniencing any normal diners who would actually be arriving with more than one person, I declined her offer to whisk me out of sight and took an entire booth for myself.
The wait staff consisted primarily of cute young female servers, one of whom was very cute indeed.
She made a friendly and flirtatious comment about how I was “flying solo,” and I mentioned to her that it was my birthday. She extended her wishes for a happy birthday and expressed disbelief when I told her how old I was, saying that I “look so young.”
She continued to flirt with me throughout dinner, and at the end, along with the complementary piece of birthday cake, she slipped me her number.
And if you believe that anything I wrote after “The wait staff consisted primarily of cute young female servers, one of whom was very cute indeed” actually happened, you obviously haven’t been paying attention.
So to get back to reality, while the wait staff consisted primarily of cute young female servers, one of whom was very cute indeed, I was served by a tall, skeletally-thin young man by the name of Jonathan.
I didn’t bother mentioning that it was my birthday to him.
Under ordinary circumstances I almost never eat veal, but when Jonathan read the specials to me I opted for the Veal Osso Bucco.
Yes, I know, it’s horrible to eat those poor little calves, but somehow the idea of devouring the young appealed to me today.
While I was waiting for my food, and was, as I suspected I would be, sticking out like a sore thumb in the crowd of couples and families, the non-conformist hostess seated a woman in the booth in front of me.
Thanks to how she was seated, the woman in the other booth and I were facing each other.
She wasn’t especially attractive, and she appeared to be even older than I am, but even though I had no interest in approaching her it was nice to see that I wasn’t the only person in the place by myself.
Of course, I was mistaken in that assumption, as she was actually waiting for someone, and from my vantage point I got to see how her face totally lit up when he arrived.
I can’t remember the last time I made a woman’s face light up (not by arriving, at any rate).
Anyway, after polishing off the rather large meal, I was surprised to see just how much it cost.
After the tip, the Veal and a Sprite came to over $30.
That was kind of a waste. While the food was good, it wasn’t worth the amount I spent on it, and given how awkward and uncomfortable being there made me feel, it’s clear that I shouldn’t have bothered going out.
When I got my mail today I did so knowing that as of this morning my mother still hadn’t mailed my card, so I wasn’t really expecting to have any sort of birthday-specific mail.
I was surprised to see that my friend Eric had remembered and had sent me a present.
I’m not up on coin collecting, so I don’t really understand the significance of the 1922 silver dollar he sent me, but it was nice of him to think of me.
After dinner I went for a little bit of a walk. I had gone over to the restaurant a little early, forgoing watching “The Simpsons,” as I wanted to avoid the dinner crowd and be sure to be home in time for “Smallville.”
Shortly after I got home my sister Kim called. We talked for about a half an hour, but her throat started to bother her (she’s got strep), so that was the end of that, and that’s probably the last acknowledgment of my birthday that I’ll get from friends and family (I also got an e-card from “Zalfiro” earlier today).
Talking to Kim cut into my viewing of “Smallville” a little, but I was easily able to get up to speed on what I missed.
Now I’ve got that “Revelations” show on, though I’m not actually watching, and next it’ll be “Law & Order,” followed by “The Daily Show” and “Blind Date,” and that will bring this pointless birthday to a close.
I don’t think it’s likely that I’ll finish the picture I mentioned earlier. I started it last night because it was at least vaguely birthday-themed, and it looked easy. Once I started on it, though, I realized that it was more complicated than I thought.
If I finish it at all it probably won’t be until next week, but we’ll see, I guess.
Anyway, that’s it for now.