birthday pies

fouad is another year older!
and he's got the pie to prove it.
there's a tasty pie place down the street,
and they baked him up a birthday sweet treat.
absolutely delicious!
(can you tell fouad's excited?)


i gave fouad his presents in the container store
equivalent of a mcdonald's happy meal,
but instead of mazes and clown faces
it was just a beautiful teal color.
fouad opened it early just cause.


a few more surprises awaited,
including a coupon, gift card and game.
my mama also got him quirkle cubes.
(quirkle is now a frequently used word in the apt)


i hope he had an amazing day and
i can't wait till next year!

san fran fan

...i really hope blogger doesn't consider this "adult content"
because i really pared down the graphic photos for this post.


the trip to san francisco last week was a blur.
from the culture to the drug use to the people
to the sweaty mass of gays running around at folsom
to the sheer excitement of seeing missed friends
i really had a wonderful and memorable time.


leather daddies and cubs roamed the streets on sunday, sept 25,
looking for hedonism, fulfillment, and perhaps
someone to water their blooming rosebuds.


i caught up with candice and chatted about unemployment.
it's nice to know we're still on the same wavelength about things.
we agreed that folsom was a mere pup in comparison
to our experience at the christopher street day festival in berlin.


digo and katharine rounded out the trip.
can you believe i hadn't seen them in over 14 months?!
we warehouse raved, smoked, SFMOMAed, chatted and ate,
and i really wish we lived closer to one another.


last but certainly not least is anna!
the last 2+ months since germany have seemed a lot longer,
and it was amazing to run through the fields into her arms.
i wish we had more time together, but it was nice nonetheless
to meet her friend cooper and talk about food orgies.

views from the apt

did i mention i moved in with fouad?
these things should obviously be noted.
to commemorate such a wonderful event,
here are some night shots from the apartment.


right by union station...


right by the capitol...


right by this tree...


... i like trees.

juggles, chuggles, snuggles

so there's a cultural gathering every sunday in a nearby park.
fouad's childhood friend brian invited us to go frolic,
and frolic we did: drumming, juggling and dance to boot.


you know the party is good when a sassy five-year-old
wearing matching bright red shades and booty pants
sits nearby and blows bubbles to the beat. cute!


these heavenly hunnies were doing the african equivalent
of the macarena, which let me tell you only looks good
in still form. their jiggle and shake were nice though.


feel the beat? fouad and i tried out the drums for the first time,
and i at least realized pretty quickly how difficult it was.
gotta pick up an instrument and practice, practice, practice.


we also realized the conditioned response of the juggling stare:
that glazed over, unfocused but extremely concentrated look
of managing 3 balls in the air instead of just 2.
i hope to continue learning!

did i forget new york?

i suppose it's after the fact,
but i spent some days and my birthday
living it up / sobbing in new york city.
this is like 2.5 weeks ago maybe,
but since coming back it's felt like months.


the equivalent of a döner does not measure up in nyc.
overpriced, sloppy, iceberg lettuce-filled and tough,
the kebab experience made me weep shortly thereafter.


interesting people do exist in america,
and their morbid obesity is not the only drawing quality.
they sometimes dress like garbage bags while carrying
garbage bags and collecting (you guessed it) garbage.


anna, fouad, jordan, chris and rochelle oh and i all went to the museum,
saw some interesting art and felt jet-lagged oh wait that was just anna and i.
fouad and i were dressed in suits and stuffed full of free desserts at the time.


the photos makes me nostalgic.
trip to california in september :)

santorini stills

why has my life been such a blur recently?



an unbelievable dream from which i can't fully recover.



each time better than the last... truly incredible.




yours forever and always,
s.p.t'd.

the best meal of my life

the dinner at le jules verne in the eiffel tower
was the best meal i will probably ever eat in my life.
i thought it best to at least mention it here:

ENTRÉES / STARTERS


HOMARD de nos cótes en rémoulade, salade de pommes sauvages
French lobster in remoulade, wild apple in salad


ENDIVES de pleine terre, jambon/truffe/comté
Baked chicory, ham/truffle/comte cheese

POISSON & VIANDE / FISH & MEAT


Blanc de TURBOT á la plancha façon Dugléré
Pan-searen turbot, Duglere-style


Noisettes de CHEVREUIL aux poivres róties en cocotte, garniture d'hiver, sauce grand veneur
Medallions of venison with peppers, roasted in a casserole, winter vegetables, grand veneur sauce

DESSERTS


Fin Palet FRAISES DES BOIS/CITRON VERT, jus passion/mangue
Wild strawberry/green lemon shortbread, passion fruit/mango sauce


L'ÉCROU AU CHOCOLAT et praliné croustillant, glace noisette
Tower bolt, dark chocolate praliné, hazelnut ice cream

--
the tower bolt was my favorite (it was deliciously silky), closely followed by the venison medallions (i like bloody meat now!), but all of it was incredible. the company was great too, of course :)

fouaddi, je t'aime

paris was nothing less than amazing. nothing less!!
wined and dined, falafeled and hmm...
well it was really fun. i had the best meal of my life there. no joke.
also the best time. i need to make a mini movie of it a.s.a.p.
too good to be true oh man oh man!

fouaddi likes nice hotels,

and fancy cars,

and reviewing photos on a boat,

but not the mona lisa. oh no, not her.

...he's colorblind!

drumroll for paris

it's coming!

weekend photo journey

fouad arrives, without coat.

fouad hasn't hurt his shin yet.

fouad used the bathroom for free.

fouad enjoys paprika chips, almdudler and whisky.

fouad thinks about apartments some more.

fouad likes apple cake.

fouad pays to use the restroom.

fouad eats chicken mush on the flight back.