Tastes like a ho-ho

Had a great night out with friends tonight. I went to Tastings for wine and tapas. Rachael baked three different kinds of cupcakes. Each were divine...the "tall hats" are these dark chocolate/coffee cupcakes with a marshmallow meringue covered in chocolate glaze. Kinda like eating a grown up Ho-Ho. Then there was the vanilla bean with coconut frosting. And the red velvet with cream cheese icing. Fabulous doesn't even begin to cover it. Let's see, three cupcakes, a few bottles of wine, cheese, olives, oh, and a lap dance. Made for a very memorable birthday party.

Did I mention tonight is the Final Four? After the Butler/Michigan game (go Bulldogs!), these State fans showed up to drown their sorrows (drinking martinis at a wine bar, but who am I to judge?). I was serenaded, lei'd, and had my own special lap dance. I'm hoarse from laughing so hard.

As if the night could get better, Bethany discovered a stack of screen printed t-shirts behind our chairs right before we left. Imagine, we are at an upscale wine establishment connected with the Conrad and Bethany finds a pile of shirts someone was selling for the game. This might have something to do with the guy who stored his suitcase behind our chairs for part of the evening. He kept opening it up to take out clothes and then he'd leave for a while, only to return empty handed and do it all over again. All I know is that I came home tonight with a silicone tagine (thanks Jamie!) and a Butler t-shirt. I loved that Bethany thought it was a gigantic breast pump.

I took a cab into downtown tonight to avoid the madness. After the trouble I had getting a cab to take me home, I now remember why I hate cabbing it in this city. First was the cab that refused to pick me up, instead waiting for some "very important people" inside the Conrad. Second was the cab that wasn't metered and tried to charge me $50 to take me home...interesting given that it was less than nine bucks to get downtown in the first place. Last was the cab that misunderstood where I wanted to go and wasn't going to take me home. At the point that I thought he was going to leave me stranded on the outskirts of downtown, I had to bribe him with my extra cupcake to take me home.

And so it is with a sated and happy heart I bid you goodnight. I'm about to crash from all of the sugar and wine I've had this evening. 35 isn't looking so bad after all.