shrimplate Moment Number Eleventy-Whatever-Three

The reviews were very good, the location was too convenient to ignore, and the weather was perfect, so after dropping off the Young One Who Can Hear Around Corners with a sitter, we stopped in for dinner. A three-piece with a singer was setting up on the outdoor area, a patio within the stores enclosing a retail/bistro outdoor square. Very cool, actually. A touch of the Mediterranean in Sonora.

The menu suggested martinis as preludes, and though I am somewhat naive, these seemed right. My spouse had Margos with fresh lime, as this is Southwestern cuisine. The singer did Gershwin and Van Morrison, while the threesome swung loosely behind her. I had a totally good osso bucco and the spouse tore into a great lobster tail and filet mignon combo with warm cilantro tortillas on the side. Nice meal, smart music.

I tipped the members of the band as we left, twenty bucks a piece. Inspired by the gin in the martinis, no doubt. The band leader thanked us and the singer, his daughter, asked us to come back to party with them later when the gig was up. Cool. Very appealing idea, I thought. Surely the kind of people I'd like to hang out with, anytime.

We didn't though. Instead we went shopping at one of those Danish European furniture places before we headed home.

Eighty bucks.

I tip well, but that was a bit over the top for me. I blamed it on my inability to stop at two martininininis. Number Three was the ringer. Serves me right for overdoing it. No wonder they invited us back later. They probably thought I had money or something.

The next day I went to Trader Joe's to get coffee and stuff. When I stepped out of my car my foot came up against a wad of cash. Five twenties. A cool one hundred. But when I went into Trader Joe's I just got the usual $3.99 Bay Blend that we always get.

You can't hang on to these things. So I wrote a check to the animal shelter and put it in the mail the next day. I was afraid to do otherwise. I needed to give them something anyways, as it had been a year since I last made them a donation.