A Golden Celebration

25 years ago, something wonderful happened and so we gather now to celebrate- eat, drink and make new friends who we won't remember come morning. All for the sake of Mac's Golden Birthday/Thanksgiving Extravaganza! (A title like that deserves exclamation...)

So, first things first, we had cake! Not just any cake, but Cookies and Cream Ice Cream cake, with strawberries and a white chocolate Happy Birthday sign. Then we went out to Hard Rock Cafe, for a CD release party for the Maldivian band called "Vengence" and a late night stop at The Four Floors of Whores (a most appropriate name, but not necessarily the real one which is much more civil, like "Orchard Towers" or something) where we quickly tired of the not-so-friendly service, trying-too-hard-to-be country music and unavoidable eavesdropping on late-night business transactions. A cultural note should be made here- Prostitution in Singapore is legal, but restricted to designated red-light districts. By outlawing pimping and street prostitution, and instituting mandatory health checks (including AIDS/HIV and other STD testing), the government holds a higher standard for the lucrative industry and often attracts workers from surrounding countries to ply their trades in legal brothels, karaoke bars and massage parlors. That being said, it doesn't make the whole thing any less shady so we headed home for a relatively early night.

Saturday we prepared our Thanksgiving feast, with less than bountiful pickings from a local supermarket. To our dismay, there was no pumpkin pie (or even just the filling, which can be eaten straight from the can) but we did find Stove Top in a box and fried onions for

green bean casserole and, thanks to the oven purchase made last week, were able to put together some semblance of a home-cooked meal.

After dinner and a bottle of champagne (personalized for the Golden Birthday Girl--who would like it to be noted that she only teared up a bit at such a thoughtful and creative gesture), we arrived at Powerhouse for the invite-only club opening, where we got in thanks to Gloria (who is

much cooler than we will ever be, at just 19) and her doorman skills. The VIP set-up was more than we expected, with a full buffet lay-out and free drinks until midnight, but in retrospect it simply fell right into place with our celebration. The entertainment was icing on the proverbial cake, with hip-hop shows and saxophone solos to name a few. Surely we can't be expected to sit back and just watch--someone had to get the dancing started, and "Twisting" was just the ticket. Our efforts, of course, were rewarded when the dancers on the stage directed their gyrations in our direction, and the saxophonist dedicated his belting of "Beautiful Girl" to yours truly.
The show ended, which was our cue to join the crowd on the stage and continue dancing. Hours later, we stumbled home, and we would have kicked Say for waking us up at the ungodly hour of 11am if we had regained any motor function yet.
A hearty hangover breakfast, and Mac made the painful (emotionally and physically) journey back to Thailand--a bearable trip considering that we would see each other again in two weeks for a long weekend on Ko Samet...