Forget about the kids... throw yourself a HUGE Birthday Bash.

Since I turned 40, I took over my birthday party planning.
I decided only I knew what I wanted.
Is it selfish of me? 
 I choose to think not. We are our choices, right?
 And I wanted a celebration of getting through another year on Earth to be fun, adventurous, something unique. And I wanted to share it with my friends- people who I feel are all three of those things.
We have done rooftop dining and comedy clubs, paintball wars and Mexican food, obstacle rope courses in trees and ESPN zone, road rallies that ended at a place where an Elvis impersonator fried our catfish, then sang to us. We have played Whirlyball fortified with jello shots and taken houseboat lake cruises followed by so many wine laden courses at a shmancy restaurant that one girl took a potato home in her purse- forever giving us the term, "A tater for later." 


 The list of friends has changed a bit over the years, as people move away- both physically and emotionally, as life demands more of our time and provides less outlets...
 as calendars are more full of stuff we have to do than stuff we want to do.


So, this year, we tried to take all the work out of it. Toss your fav beer in a cooler. Get sitters for your kids. Stand in your driveway. And let's go have fun.

yes. it was a charter bus... and pretty darn big. The same one 50 strippers took to Miami two weeks earlier, earning 30k each for 5 days work and tipping the driver a record 5k.

 no kidding.

 Um. That smiling girl? She's not a stripper. But the guy in the hat? he might be.




 Because I am all about theme and that shit, we bought this beer.

 
Because we were going to this place for music, crafts, beer and fun.

See, we had the beer and the fun. You gotta rank things of importance.

This guy might be smelling the port-a-potty or that could be the gyro booth.

There was a MELLOW LOUNGE. I am not sure what was there. i was trying to play Eagle Scout and keep a large group intact. Let it be known, I was kicked out of Girl Scouts and made a really crappy Brownie, so whoever thought i should be in charge maybe also knows why Sweetwater calls their beer 4:20.
 Uh-huh.


After a while, we got back on the bus and took the scenic route to a teeny little theater in a questionable neighborhood. The theater dude encouraged us to BYOB. Man, does he know me or what? And we even shared with the actors on stage during the drinking game portion of the show.
 yes.
 The drinking game portion of the show.
I will have to upload that section on YOUTUBE tomorrow.

 these guys were great, and with a competition type format, it was full audience participation.

We went dancing afterward, and just to ward off the hangovers, we ate some spicy messy food.

We only lost a few people along the way.. somehow, I think that's a record. And for my bus riding pals, here's a song:

Some people call me the space cowboy, yeah
Some call me the gangster of love
Some people call me Maurice
Cause I speak of the pompitous of love

People talk about me, baby
Say I'm doin' you wrong, doin' you wrong
Well, don't you worry baby
Don't worry
Cause I'm right here baby, right here, right here, right here at home.

thanks for coming out to play