Happy birthday to me!

So Sunday was my birthday. I have class early on Mondays, so I didn’t really want to go out on Sunday night, but what’s the point of going out for your 21st birthday before you actually turn 21? Mary (my roommate) said we should go out Saturday night, and I lamented that then I would not be able to order a drink at dinner. Mary said we could go to a bar at midnight and get a drink then and it would be exciting. I lamented that most bars in New Orleans let you in when you’re eighteen so what would be the point? Mary told me that Pat O’Brien’s, home of the Hurricane cocktail, dueling piano bar, “flaming” fountain, and many many stories from my friends, does not let you in until you are 21. So I agreed that that would be exciting.

My friends Vaune, Johnny and Amanda came to Mary’s and my apartment at 6:30. Mary informed me that it is a New Orleans tradition that, on your birthday, someone pins a dollar to your shirt. Then other people will know it’s your birthday and they are supposed to pin more dollars to your shirt. I thought this was crazy, but a lot of strangers wished me happy birthday while we were out!

So Amanda drove all of us to Port of Call, which is a restaurant on Esplanade, on the edge of the French Quarter. They have the best baked potatoes of all time, and pretty amazing burgers, too. They don’t take reservations and the wait outside is usually about an hour… but it’s worth it. We eventually got inside and all had delicious baked potatoes and burgers.



Dinner folk, minus Johnny (who was taking the picture):
Amanda, Vaune, Mary and me. Note the dollar!


Neither Vaune nor Amanda really wanted to stay out late, so they left after dinner. Johnny and Mary and I meandered over to Bourbon St. We couldn’t actually get in to Pat O’s until midnight, and we hadn’t really planned what to do for that time, so we just walked up and down Bourbon St. for a while. Eventually we stepped in to Hustlet Hollywood, which is a really silly store on Bourbon St. It seems every single time I go to Bourbon St. I stop in there… I can’t help it! It just amuses me so much. Also our legs were pretty tired by that time, and HH has this plush couch shaped like lips and draped with feather boas, so Mary and I sat there and rested our feet for a few minutes while Johnny made a goodnight phone call to his long-distance love.

In Hustler Hollywood: Mary seriously considered buying me this hat if I would agree to wear it any time she asked.


"Death of Bachelorhood" elaborate bachelor party parade on Bourbon


Johnny and I on Bourbon St


At around 11 we went out in search of a daquiri, but by the time we chose one of the many daiquiri spots, I wasn’t feeling too great. While we were standing around outside debating what to do, we ran into Ly, another friend of mine, and so we talked to her for a bit. Then, around 11:30, our friends Culum and Stacey finally made it into the Quarter. We decided that it was near enough to midnight that we could probably convince the bouncers to let me into Pat O’s, so we headed over there. The bouncer looked at my ID, looked at me, looked at my ID, looked at the dollars on my shirt, looked at my ID again, and finally got this huge grin on his face and said, “Happy Birthday!” and let us in. All was well. We went into the outdoor courtyard of Pat O’s, which was full of colored lights and fountains and pretty foliage and well-dressed cocktail waiters, and we all ordered Hurricanes. We sat around and played a silly card game we’d picked up at Hustler Hollywood and had an all-around good time.

My first drink as a 21 year old!


Johnny enjoying his Hurricane


Silliness with cherries


One Hurricane from Pat O’s is a pretty big drink, and I drink slowly, so by the time I’d finished mine it was near one. Stacey and Culum were ready to go, and I made the executive decision to go with them, because I had a lot of homework and didn’t want to be out too late either. While we were walking down Bourbon, I saw a Lucky Dog stand. Since I hadn’t bought a drink with my birthday money (which is what you are supposed to do) I bought a Lucky Dog with it! ¼ of meat, plus chili, pickle relish, onions and mustard. A great way to end the night!



So I went out and had a fun night with friends, did a lot of traditional New Orleanian things, and still was home relatively early (for a 21st birthday) and didn’t have too much to drink… so I will actually remember my 21st birthday! It was really a perfect night.

I did homework most of the day on my actual birthday, but then for dinner my friend Rachel and I went to O'Henry's, a restaurant that serves free steak on your birthday. And it's good steak! So I had a free steak, and then the family at the table next to us heard that it was my 21st birthday, so they insisted on buying my drink (which was a very strange blue concoction), which was really cute. It was parents with children and a grandmother (named Bobbe, short for Roberta!), and the mom was all matter-of-factly explaining the importance of turning 21. The little boy was very intrigued. It was adorable.

Well now that I have shared this story with you I can be off to the rest of my day! Which mostly involves doctor's appointments, pharmacies and grocery shopping.