Dinner tonight was my traditional "little birthday dinner," moved from Chinese in Seattle to Indian in Tooting. Years ago I realized it was more fun and less hassle to make it a dinner where I treat my friends, which can make for a limited guest list but tends to be unlimited fun for me. I like having a chance to having all of my good friends around me while I enjoy their company, and, really, it's so much better if I don't have to cook the food. This year was Masaledar on Tooting High Street - a place which allows you to bring your own booze (something that wouldn't happen in Seattle). Amazingly we only made it through three bottles of wine - thank you everyone who came, it was lovely to see you (and it was almost an entirely different cast of folks from last night which meant extra YAY for me to see them). It was silly having happy birthday sang to me while I waited to blow out a lighter, but, hey, it's tradition.
I am now the proud owner of tickets to see the Mariinsky (formerly the Kirov) Ballet's Swan Lake in August (thanks,
wechsler!), and SO many good books. Books are great, books are the gift that keeps on giving, books will stay with me for months and months and when I've finished them I will share them with other people. Thanks to everyone who's tried to help me out of the horrible situation of Not Having Something To Read. For a person who buys almost a book a week, this is far more of a problem than it ought to be. Still, I ought to be covered at least through the autumn at this rate. And yet ... somehow I feel that before July has finished, I'll still wind up buying another book! Ah, sweet addiction. 