Best Birthday of the Year!

Woke up birthday morning and opened up this birthday card I had received a few weeks before from my family.  It was jam-packed full of all sorts of hamburger gift cards, ranging from places like Steak n Shake and Five Guys to the Spotted Pig and Dumont! I was so tickled by the thoughtfulness and effort. What a way to start the day!

At night I met up with some friends for dinner (congratulations to you if you could tell this photo was from after dinner) at Famous Sichuan on Pell street, my secret favorite restaurant. It was so good to be with so many of my homies.

And a bonus bit of awesome: Karen was in town from San Jose and Casey was in town from living wherever he feels like living.

This is but the tiniest portion of what we ate. The tables nearly buckled under the weight of everything we ordered.

 I was too busy chowing down and visiting to take many pictures.  Here's a few were no one was making a chewing face.

Brenda made my birthday dreams come true by baking a tunnel of fudge cake! A long lost cake of my youth, returned to visit me once more!

BUT imagine my surprise and speechless delight at the sight of this Shark-festooned backup cake that Brenda's roommate Chelsea decorated. I am still trying to come to terms with the thoughtfulness and effort. For now this shark lives in my fridge. I don't know if I can ever eat him. Might have to keep him around forever like a happy Havisham.

A big thank you for everyone who helped me celebrate my birthday, whether by surprise gift, coming out to my dinner, calling, texting, writing on my Facebook wall, and even if you sent me a Google+ message.  Which is weird.  But, ok.  If that's how you want to do it.