Another Birthday

Even though I still feel like I'm in my twenties it's taken me two decades to realize I have truly left that period behind! I did, however, have a fun weekend which worked superbly to keep me from certain depression that I'm another year older. On Saturday Daryl and I met up with friends at an Ethiopian restaurant on Fairfax in LA. Shaun Naidoo, a music professor and composer, grew up in Ladysmith. His father, a most unusual and somewhat arrogant man, was my high school principal. Vicki is also a music professor, and an accomplished pianist. Shaun and Vicki are incredibly lovely and it was really special to share a communal style meal with them at tastefully decorated Rahel's.

In the evening we went to see Il Trittico at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion. I wore a sari for the first time in public and I think if anyone who knows about saris had seen me they might have been mortified! As it was the opening night at Chandler everyone got a glass of free champagne. Last time we did this a few years ago we arrived early enough to see dignitaries stepping off limos and getting on to the red carpet at the entrance.
Il Trittico by Puccini is three one act operas. The performance at Chandler was stellar. The third act was a Woody Allen production. It was supposed to be a farce and Allen did a fantastic job with working that to the max. yet maintaining good taste. I enjoyed every minute of it.
After the opera we didn't have to drive back to Santa Barbara, because we decided to stay over in LA at a hotel. A birthday treat. Our hotel was right in the Golden Mile area near LACMA. A really cool location. We walked to La Brea Bakery the next morning and gorged on exquisite fresh baked pastries and satisfying strong coffee. After that we walked around the neighborhood a bit. Then we wandered around the shopping area called The Grove and then the Farmer's Market. We lunched at the Singapore restaurant - a tasty curry served on a banana leaf. We drove back to Santa Barbara after lunch and had a quiet, relaxing evening at home.
And now I begin a new year.