A Happy New Year Covered Entirely By Plant Matter

I’ve always wanted to see the Tournament of Roses Parade. This morning we got something a lot better. We went to the float staging area and hung out with the constructors at midnight.

The neat thing about it is that you can get really close to the floats to see how they’re built. Flax, seeds, weeds, flowers (of course), grasses, husks, hulls…

The mood was jovial…

…and kinda crowded for a chilly evening in Pasadena.

We started the evening at the Firefly Bistro, immediately eschewing their fixed price New Year’s Eve menu (seventy five dollars a head!). I opted instead for the pan-seared Ahi filet on a bed of delicious but undercooked lentils and tempura asparagus (who the hell thought of that?) with “portabello chips” (read: overcooked mushroom nuggets). A much cheaper option. By the way, did I mention that we dined in a tent? They normally serve in an outdoor patio environment, but as I mentioned, Pasadena was a little chilly so they applied the easy ambiance of tent flaps.

I wonder if the kids serving in Iraq were treated to such elegance. Clearly not. Our tent was white, theirs was likely O.D. Green. I’m sure that if they were served a gingerbread tarte tatin as we were, they would’ve enjoyed it as much as we did.

Then the oddest thing happened…

The bill for the whole thing after tip (for the spotty service) was two hundred bucks, so we left a Franklin and five Jacksons. We laid the cash down, closed the leather folder and left. As we made our way to the car, the waitress hurried out behind us. “Excuse me! I don’t think you left enough!” “Really?” I asked. “What about the hundred under your thumb?” “Oh!”

Yeah, oh.

…and some random stranger (redundant, I know) handed my Beautiful and Talented Bride™ a bottle of champagne last night. No rhyme, no reason. the guy was just feeling jovial I suppose. He got a hug and a “thank you” out of the deal, likely the best offer he’d had all night.

So, how was your evening?

Your pal,

bob