Frightful beginning - happy ending

Yesterday was the 37th wedding anniversary of SWMBO and I. I said I was going to take her to dinner at a swank place, the Hassayampa Inn's Peacock Room.


I was also arranging a bit of a surprise: the BRD and her beau would be joining us a few minutes after we were ensconced. Setting it up with BRD in the morning, she said get a booth and tell them it's for four but to only have it originally set for two. So I did.

There's something to remember when you try to do this. The person you make the reservation with earlier in the day is usually not the person who will seat you in the evening. When we arrived, he said "Ah, it's a table for four."

I mumbled something about their being a mistake, there were only two of us. So he took us to a table for two. I pointed at the booth I had been promised and said, "Couldn't we sit there?"

He responded, "But that's set for four."

Oh, damn.

I finally had to whisper in his ear that we had two more coming but my wife didn't know about it, that it was a surprise. So he switched us to the larger booth. But, of course, by this time SWMBO had tumbled to the "surprise." With a grim expression, she asked if BRD and her beau were joining us, then said she wasn't happy about going to an expensive restaurant in the first place and now I was doubling the price! Well, she calmed down after getting into her FIRST martini.

The other couple arrived and the rest of the evening went fairly well, though the girl's scallops initially weren't cooked enough and had to go back to the kitchen for more heat. The evening's chef . . . who we learned actually was the sous chef since the head guy was off for the evening . . . later came to our table, apologized repeatedly and bought us a dessert.

I could tell you a story about the BRD's attire but I think I'd better not.

Oh, I forgot to tell you about the beginning of this idyllic evening.

As we were heading out, probably a mile from our home, we came to a 90 degree turn in the road. I saw a car approaching from the opposite direction and figured that we were both likely to get to the corner at the same time. We did. He had the setting sun in his eyes and, like many drivers including myself who come through that corner every day, he cut the corner. I had slowed down but hit my brakes as we two drivers found ourselves staring into each others eyes and he swerved to avoid a head-on collision. As one of my friends noted this morning - avoiding a head-on collision: priceless.

Oh, but let me go back even further. Before leaving home, I nicked myself while shaving. As SWMBO noted, I haven't cut myself in years doing that but because we have a big night out planned . . .

No styptic pencil at home so I wandered the house wearing a small piece of tissue stuck to my face. SWMBO suggested applying some "New Skin". She didn't tell me that it was going to burn like fire. And, it didn't stop the bleeding! After a second application and then some make-up work by SWMBO, I was ready to go. And the rest is history.

Next year it may be the drive through lane at McDonald's!