
Bawstin and Lem
Yesterday was my 28th birthday. Something about that seems really…adult.
I don’t really know how grown-ups are supposed to act, but I am working on it. That meant drinking water all throughout Saturday night as I celebrated. Also, I didn’t fall even one time. I am a lady.
What I do know is this: I looked around the crowded bar Saturday night and I felt incredibly lucky to have so many amazing friends. I was throwing the party with Cindarella, one of the best friends anyone could ever ask for, and everyone was having a great time. I felt really loved. Life? It isn’t so bad.

Irish Lebowski and Lem
Then I snapped the hell out of it and continued drinking…birthday are not for self reflection, but mindless drunkening.
Yesterday, I spent the day with three of my most favorite people and doing what I do best…eating. The day started with brunch at Ardeo with Irish Lebowski. They’ve recently revamped the brunch menu and they seem a bit off balance. While my butternut crostini was delicious, everything else was subpar. The custard toast was soggy and burnt (a tough combination to pull off) and our food took ages to arrive. I was a bit let down–Ardeo is usually better than what I experienced yesterday–but I enjoyed the company and harnessed my chi about the whole ordeal.
Dinner was with Aunt LifeSaver and SuperBoy at the always tasty Comet. God, I cannot get enough of those melted onions…all I really need is some pizza and a wheat beer and I am a happy little clam.
Finally, Cindarella picked me up for a late night treat at Buzz and I had the best carrot cake cupcake…ever. Nutty and full of raisins, it was perfectly moist with just the right amount of cream cheese froting. Also, isn’t that carrot on top just adorable? I was in heaven.
If the next 28 years are like this weekend, I think I can handle being an adult.


9:48 am on January 12th, 2009
Happy Birthday!
Danke.
[Reply]
10:21 am on January 12th, 2009
Happy birthday, doll!
Thanks, Shannon!
[Reply]
10:27 am on January 12th, 2009
Happy Birthday Lem. So sorry I missed the shindig. Oh, and how about a picture of the dress we heard so much about? From what little I can see, of the dress that is, it looks like a killer. Yeow!
It was, in fact, a killer. Is that bad to say? I loved it.
[Reply]
10:34 am on January 12th, 2009
you looked gorgeous! so happy everything with the weekend was a hit! woo!
It was lovely. Thanks.
[Reply]
10:40 am on January 12th, 2009
Happy Birthday (again)! So glad you had a good time
Me too.
[Reply]
10:46 am on January 12th, 2009
Happy birthday!
That dress looks fabulous, and you look like you’re having such a great time.
(And congrats on not falling! I know, for me, that’s often a feat in and of itself.)
Yes, I am a bull in a china shop, so it was a feat. And thanks.
[Reply]
10:51 am on January 12th, 2009
Happy birthday, Lem! I love birthdays, and I’m so glad you enjoyed yours. Best wishes for the coming year!
I think it is going to be a good one.
[Reply]
11:02 am on January 12th, 2009
happppy birthday kiddo….
i think the birthday fairy left a teeeeny lil supmthin sumpthin for you at my place…sooo…MUST catch up soon!
xoxo
Aw, thanks. We must…STAT.
[Reply]
11:05 am on January 12th, 2009
Happy, Happy Birthday!!
Thanks thanks.
[Reply]
11:05 am on January 12th, 2009
Happy, happy birthday!!!! On each birthday I have, I always make sure to pause and take a moment during the festivities and celebrations to note the friends and/or family around me and reflect on how very loved and lucky I am. So happy to hear you enjoyed that very moment this weekend!
And, seeing as how you noted three different eating hot spots in this post, I have to ask whether you saw that the NY Times picked Washington, DC as number two in the list of “44 Places to Go in 2009″ largely because of the newly thriving culinary scene? Go figure. Less than a year after I leave the damn District, a Democrat takes the White House AND the restaurant scene flourishes. What luck…
I know, horrible timing you have. You’ll have to make sure you come back and visit.
[Reply]
11:09 am on January 12th, 2009
Happy B-Day!!!
Appreciate it.
[Reply]
11:19 am on January 12th, 2009
Please note: I waited in line – IN LINE(!) – in the cold, cold rain to see you in that dress. It did not disappoint. Raor.
Wish I could’ve seen the shoes, too, but it was just too crowded to get down on all fours and have a looksee.
Thanks. I loved it. I think I may just wear it around the house.
Thanks for waiting in line.
[Reply]
11:20 am on January 12th, 2009
Y’know – I LOVE carrot cake but raisins in anything just bothers me.. although, that doesn’t really matter. Heh.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY!! AGAIN!!
See, I love the raisins. We can still be friends.
[Reply]
11:24 am on January 12th, 2009
Happy birthday, Lem! Don’t sweat that acting-grownup thingy, it’s horribly overrated. So long as you don’t leave obligations unattended, you can have fun forever, and don’t let any prissy fools tell you otherwise.
K waited in freakin’ line for you? Hot damn, you’re popular! I’ll have to agree that the… well, the straps on the dress are lovely.
Best straps in DC, lemme tell you.
[Reply]
11:26 am on January 12th, 2009
(whereas I can’t see the rest.) [Bloody hell, how'd I hit post before meaning to again? That's 3 times this morning. More coffee...]
You can use your imagination I am sure.
[Reply]
11:40 am on January 12th, 2009
You didn’t fall once? What are you trying to do – make us all look bad?
I always make you look bad.
[Reply]
11:44 am on January 12th, 2009
didn’t fall? not once? that *is* a happy birthday miracle.
It sure is.
[Reply]
11:47 am on January 12th, 2009
I thought this was a really nice post until I got to the end. Carrot cake? I’d wish you Happy Birthday but I have to barf first.
Carrot cake is the distilled essence of evil.
Peter
Just make sure you brush your teeth after you barf–it can rot your teeth.
[Reply]
12:06 pm on January 12th, 2009
Glad I could share that speshul night with you, lady. And your 80’s mix awaits…
http://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewIMix?id=302006875
I cannot wait for it–want now.
[Reply]
1:48 pm on January 12th, 2009
That dress….. that is all
Go big or go home.
[Reply]
2:00 pm on January 12th, 2009
I want a rabbit fur coat now for my birthday. Make it happen.
Play nice. Also, this is about me.
[Reply]
2:08 pm on January 12th, 2009
I seem to remember some other blue dress…..Must have been somebody else. You on the other hand, look marvelous!
Happy Birthday Lem!
I felt marvelous. Thanks.
[Reply]
2:24 pm on January 12th, 2009
“But not a real green dress, that’s cruel…”
Oh… wait … blue *slaps forehead*
Sorry to hear Ardeo didn’t pan out, but sounds like the rest of the weekend went swimmingly (Complete with lack of falling! Yay!).
Mmmm.. carrot cake… cream cheese frosting….
~S~
Cream cheese frosting is the most superior of all the frostings.
[Reply]
2:29 pm on January 12th, 2009
Happy B-day. I now have that damn Toy’s R Us song etched into my brain due to you…I don’t wanna grow up, I’m a….yea, its like that!
Cuz maybe if I did…
[Reply]
2:38 pm on January 12th, 2009
Happy Birthday pretty lady! I’m 30 and still do not know how an adult behaves. If you figure it out, please let me in on it!
I will send you a telegram.
[Reply]
3:03 pm on January 12th, 2009
Happiest of birthdays to you, woman! Twenty eight. What a fabulous age to be! I love your dress and now I’m too curious about your tattoo…..
I have a tattoo?
[Reply]
3:10 pm on January 12th, 2009
On your right shoulder in that first picture? Maybe it’s a shadow!
I know…I was kidding.
[Reply]
3:29 pm on January 12th, 2009
Nice haircut.
Got it cut Friday–thanks.
[Reply]
3:31 pm on January 12th, 2009
Okay. Just so you know. I totally went back and scrutinized that picture. Several times. Just to see if I was THAT batty. I’m easily tricked. So easy.
No no, I have one.
[Reply]
4:18 pm on January 12th, 2009
Happy Birthday!
I left a $10 bill on top of the toilet in your apt. Consider it my gift to you.
Better than the nightstand, I spose.
[Reply]
4:33 pm on January 12th, 2009
I am now thinking about physics, so that I might find a way to stick a candle in your Amy Winehouse prize cookies and make it survive shipping.
It is the thought that counts.
[Reply]
4:34 pm on January 12th, 2009
That $10 bill almost makes up for the fact that Phil didn’t flush.
What part of “I don’t like bathroom humor” don’t you people understand?
[Reply]
4:41 pm on January 12th, 2009
So great to see you. Happy Birthday. xoxo
You were such a treat. Thanks for stopping by.
[Reply]
5:49 pm on January 12th, 2009
Happy Birthday! But 28 is kid’s stuff.
Thanks–I need to hear that.
[Reply]
6:27 pm on January 12th, 2009
Beautiful Lemm, I’m so glad you had a wonderful birthday. I’m sorry I missed the Saturday celebration.
You had your very good reasons.
[Reply]
6:57 pm on January 12th, 2009
Most people who think they’re not grown-ups are wrong. Only by isolating themselves from adolescents and young adults could they think that. Usually, “I’m not a grown-up” means that they’re adult, but just one who’s fucked up their life.
People who are truly young at heart recall and talk a lot stuff from their youth, like how good actors naturally tap into previous experiences to understand a role. You, Kassy, and Irina are like that — and me too, obviously — but most aren’t.
You look a lot more Slavic than in the pictures you posted pre-weight loss. It’s fun watching people’s faces change ethnicity in their 20s. In elementary school, I looked vaguely part-Japanese (I’m 1/4), but since 23, I’ve looked totally European (French and Scotch-Irish).
I guess I never really thought about how my face changed “ethnicity” but I would agree.
[Reply]
7:18 pm on January 12th, 2009
Happy Belated! If ever there was a time for delicious cupcakes, it is birthdays. And at 29, I can tell you, feeling like an adult ain’t all bad. However, don’t ask me that in in 6 months…
I think every day is a day for cupcakes, but the birthday is the best day.
[Reply]
7:41 pm on January 12th, 2009
I just realized you were exactly 10 days old when my son was born. Now that was a really good winter, yes?
Happy birthday! I hope 28 will be a great year for you!
A fantastic winter. Thanks, barbara.
[Reply]
8:20 pm on January 12th, 2009
Happy Birthday!
I read your lovely and courageous blog about body image a while back and feel I must say, as someone who has never met you in real life, I look at these pictures and see a really beautiful woman. Sometimes a girl need to be told.
Here’s to your next 28!
Welcome Single Girl. Thanks so much. That is very kind.
[Reply]
8:55 pm on January 12th, 2009
happy birthday!
Thanks!
[Reply]
10:39 pm on January 12th, 2009
Being an adult gets a bad rap. Do you know that when I was little, I wanted to hurry up and be an adult with my own place so that I could – get this – have a candy jar filled with sweets for when guests came over? True story. Um, and I wanted to open a candy store slash bakery too. Twas a strange child. The point is, when you are an adult, there is CANDY. Allll the candy you want. And the calories don’t count.
Ahem.
Still so sorry to have missed it. 28 never looked so good. Love you, mama.
PS – Single Girl, she looks even more amazing in person. I would do her. Again.
fatty! That is our secret.
I dream of that day.
[Reply]
12:50 am on January 13th, 2009
Happy birthday Lem
Eat drink and be merry then
Repent tomorrow
Since it is your birthday I will allow you the raisins and whatever else is used in a carrot cupcake without comment snide or otherwise. Even the Let’s Leave Fruit Out of Cakes and Chocolate Association makes allowances for birthdays and weddings (but don’t push it!). Love the dress, tres chic and tres elegant. Just like the birthday girl.
I’d like to thank the association for the exception. And thanks re: the dress.
[Reply]
5:04 am on January 15th, 2009
There ain’t nothing to being an adult – just act like a kid.
Happy Birthday Lem!
I can do that!
[Reply]