out of my prime

Yesterday I turned 44, still a pretty neat number if not quite as geeky cool as this past year’s 43. My birthday itself was quiet; Julie took me to lunch, and gifted me with a collection of Ursula K. LeGuin (a shared favorite author) short stories, but otherwise the day was unmarked. Jeff, who had to drive his aunt to the airport, didn’t think he’d be home until late in the evening, so I stayed at the office until 6:30 and ate some packaged paleek paneer from Trader Joe’s for dinner once I got home.

On Sunday, though, we celebrated my birthday (the queen’s observed birthday, we mused) by seeing Leslie Jordan’s (Beverley Leslie on Will & Grace, and Brother Boy in the deliciously camp Sordid Lives, with Olivia Newton-John and Delta Burke) one-man, hilarious autobiographical show, Like a Dog on Linoleum. Afterwards we walked down Market Street, enjoying the unusual San Francisco sunshine and warmth, before heading back to Daly City for dinner at the Boulevard Cafe (yelp reviews), with its great googie-style architecture. I didn’t realize until much later that they completely forgot to bring us our calamari appetizer (though they also didn’t bill us for it, so no harm no foul). Service was friendly and attentive. The “early bird” special, which included an entree, soup or salad, and a drink for $12.95 was a great deal. We both had salisbury steak with mushrooms in a red wine sauce, garlic mashed potatoes, and steamed string beans. The only complaint we had was that the entree—albeit very moist and flavorful—could have used just another tablespoon or two of sauce.

We skipped dessert at the restaurant, though, in favor of frapuccinos at the nearby Starbucks, and then we headed over to Thornton Beach Vista, a spot on the edge of the cliffs overlooking Thornton Beach State Park and the Pacific Ocean, only about a mile from our house, where we walked the trails and took lots of pictures in the golden late afternoon sunlight (and Jeff, apparently, secretly fantasized my demise). I still just can’t get over that we actually live less than a mile from the Pacific Ocean.

All in all, a very nice way to observe a birthday.