I don’t even know where to start.
I could start with the part where I leaned over the railing after dinner to look at the people on the first floor of the restaurant, and said, “Those people are down there because they don’t even have blogs. That guy over there, what do you think his URL is? NOTHING. FAIL. It’s bloggers-only up here on the Mezzanine.” I mean, I could start there, but that was during the late half of the middle part.
Or I could start with the really surreal part, where we had drinks at Gilt where none of the waitresses are shorter than five-foot-thirteen, and then the Nine Tuxedo’d Men were seated across the restaurant from the table full of drag queens, and the in-bar movie was Jesus Christ Superstar, and tell about how we tried to eat the table’s centerpiece on the way out, which is why I walked all the way to Voodoo Doughnuts with a rose clenched between my teeth, but that part really should come further along in the story arc.
I could start further back, with barbecued ribs and Black Butte Porter and movies on Friday, or Wordstock the next morning, both with non-internet friends, all of whom I think the world of even if those selfish bastards can’t generate any traffic for me.
Or I could fast-forward a bit, to goblets of Gewurztraminer back at the hotel after all the bars had closed, or backtrack to the Vault with its wide selection of martinis, or skip to the part where I was invited to lunch at the TeaZone today, or wind back to breakfast at Besaw’s, where I think they make you wait to eat just so that apple-fritter french toast as a side dish sounds too tempting to pass up.
And I haven’t even touched on the waiter from Bellingham (not Bellevue!) who recommended the cheese, or the bottle of bicycle wine, or Powell’s on Hawthorne, or the pirate tattoos that came in the mail today.
Really, it’s so arbitrary where you choose to start, so I guess I could start three years ago this month when I started this blog, originally so that I could learn more about web technologies in the hopes that I might freelance some design work, and also to distract myself from the mind-crippling funk I was in at the time. I had no idea what it would all lead to back then, all the people I would meet (and those of you I have yet to meet!) and the cross-country adventures it would lead to.
As for where it ends, I hope it doesn’t, although this post should come to an end soon, so I suppose I’ll wrap things up by saying thank you, to everyone who stopped by to wish me a happy birthday yesterday and to everyone else too, just because.
Thanks! It’s been a blast.




November 11th, 2008 on 5:55 am
my friend, you sound like a really good time.
must. meet.
November 11th, 2008 on 6:44 am
Okay, so I’m obviously not tweaked enough to figure out this whole post and its meaning. But it sort of sounds like you’re shutting down…which had better not be the case or there will be a serious ass whopping. And you’ve mentioned a nice selection of our fair city’s favourite haunts. Can I sit on the upper level with you? I mean, the gays can come up there too….right????
November 11th, 2008 on 7:47 am
Wow. I thought *I* packed alot into my Birthday Week. You, my friend, take the cake. (Which I totally would have baked for you. If I didn’t live at the completely opposite corner of the country…) Belated b’day wishes!
November 11th, 2008 on 10:07 am
crys, agreed. MUST.
lewis, if you don’t mind being seen with US PEOPLE then I insist you sit next to me on the mezzanine.
laurel, thanks! send cake plz.
November 11th, 2008 on 10:21 am
Oh man… that apple-fritter french toast. Mmmmmm… Stumptown, I heart you so hard! Also you, Vahid.
November 11th, 2008 on 12:09 pm
Good times. Glad it was a good one.
November 11th, 2008 on 2:50 pm
well at least i got to be there by twitter/picture mail, though for the record, i would have much rather been there in person. glad you had fun without me
November 11th, 2008 on 3:33 pm
Oh sure… and I wasn’t even invited. I guess the ladies wanted no distractions while they helped you celebrate. Story of my life.
November 11th, 2008 on 3:33 pm
I’m trying to contain my jealousy, I really am, but it’s really, really hard.
November 11th, 2008 on 4:03 pm
I’d have paid good money (or at least bought you a drink or ten) to witness you telling non blogging patrons that they were failures. Hahaha, awesome! Glad you had fun too.
November 11th, 2008 on 6:46 pm
shari, I heart you too.
sizzle, it was good times, indeed.
kat, for the record, I would rather you’d been there too.
dave2, you know what a distraction you are to the ladies. how am I supposed to get any action with you around?
jennie, c’mon, in three weeks it will be my turn to be jealous. It’ll be hard then, too. (twss!)
hilly, pack your bags and mark your calendar, woman, we’ve got our meet up coming soon.
November 12th, 2008 on 1:00 am
This really has nothing to do with the post but I was talking to my mom today about Portland (don’t exactly know how we got to that subject but that doesn’t matter) and I was all, “My friend Vahid lives there and yadda yadda”
She stops me and goes, “Why is everyone you know online guys? Is there something you’re not telling me?”
I just thought it was funny.
November 12th, 2008 on 7:00 am
I’m not sure where you were for all of those things, but from now on, I want to be wherever you are if being where you are leads to what went on wherever you were. So, from now on be sure to let me know where you’re going to be so that I can be where you are.
Also, yes I agree that the magic is in the hole. Where else could it be?
November 12th, 2008 on 4:38 pm
Sounds like a great time. Belated happy day!
November 12th, 2008 on 5:44 pm
sarah, I hope you told her that online guys are way cooler than regular joe six-packs.
sir, I can tell you where I’m gonna be when tequilacon season comes around again. hope you’re there too.
mad william, it was so awesome I’m only just now caught up on sleep.
November 12th, 2008 on 6:36 pm
Wow, sounds like a fun time to me haha. We should make a big meetup sometime… I’d love to meet all these ppl I’ve met on the net through blogging
Oh and happy belated
November 13th, 2008 on 8:22 pm
Happy belated birthday, Vahid!!! Glad you had a good time. Here’s to a year of great things for you.