Ciao Bibliophiles! It is late. But something's kept me awake just for you. I'm actually very sick and my fever is back. So figure out what it is that's keeping me going tonight and send me an email if you can guess...
I hate to have to say this, but we (I?) have a problem. Fearless Leader is feeling a little low, not just because of the fever that he has, but because there was a little technology failure tonight. Yes. Someone noticed a lot of beeping at one point in the evening, and basically what happened was that Fearless Leader's little hand held computer froze up. And then he cut the power source, and when it rebooted the little computer started blinking "888." It's a bad sign whenever a binary device gets obsessed with one particular number. In our case, it means that precious moments from this evening were lost forever. Not that I really care in the slightest about most of it, but at last count there were 22 pictures of one of our new members that I will not be able to "look at briefly" on my big screen TV before bed this evening.
So, I'm a little down.
Okay, so a picture's worth a 1000 words, but we don't have many pictures, so we're going to do things the old fashioned way. First, and foremost. THANK YOU KATHRYN. It was a wonderful evening. The food was excellent, and I heard that 10 of 11 of us who drank your Sangria were very pleased. And, by the way, the mixed fruit for desert demonstrated your sensitivity. It was a statement that you sincerely care about the health of your fellow Book Clubbers and it was tasty and delicious too. Ice Cream. Who needs it?
And then there was our truly insightful discussion of "ILL Canto." Fearless leader as we know did not like this book.
His intellectual equal and Soul Mate, who he loves deeply, felt the same way (she really looks good here, doesn't she? If only...)
My Soul Mate's on the right. I'm not sure what's happening there on her left.
Personally, I think that Mary and I might have had a chance to sway opinion were it not for one very passionate member of our club. And I have to say, I am deeply in debited to Tom. Tom, Buddy, Brother. I thought that I was dead inside, but then I met this off-the-charts passionate Dutch woman named Anna in London and then I realized, maybe, just maybe, I might be able to feel again. But I have to say after tonight, after the incredible passion that you showed for this incredibly mediocre. intellectually pedestrian book, well, guy, I am most definitely alive again. Passion is so sexy. And I feel just like a little ducky, born again. The first thing that a little ducky sees, it calls it's mother. Mommy, can we go out next week? Please....????
I love you. I just can't hide it any more.
And oh, yes. It was a good discussion. We had fun and it was a nice evening, and the usual suspect did (again) try to put the move on our usual target (I've heard that more than two of us have asked her out --she says no in such a nice way --I've heard). Did I catch this on film?
Ah, but now it's time to honor our new members. Chris, guy, I'm sorry but my handheld ate your photo. You're going to have to realize though, that this is the way it sometime goes in Book Club. But one new member photo did survive, and it is up on the big TV right now, and it's making it very hard to write coherently. I mean, would you look at the definition in those arms in the picture that you're going to have to wait for.... Something was definitely going on tonight. People. I could smell it. And you can see it on Drew's completely stoic face (he sat next to her all night and that was not by chance --check out the look.)
A happy camper for sure. Who wouldn't be? Well Tom, Drew and Scott (and probably Chris S), but not me. Fearless Leader is like a monk. And it's a good thing, because there's only one picture left, although I have to say that this is more than enough.
*****
"Mom, you're going to see this tomorrow morning in California, can you believe what I'm looking at here?
Really? What do you think? Marriage material. Yeah. I would marry her in a second.
Yes. Really. I understand the importance of subtlety. I'm being subtle. But still, take a look. I mean really. And she reads on top of everything else. No. Really Mom, she's reading in the picture. I'm okay right now. Still, though, what do you think?
Sure. Yeah. Les Pinasse. Danielle's (of course). La Cote Basque. La Reserve. But how do we impress a woman with upper arm definition like this? No. Zagat's is absolutely meaningless is this kind of a situation. You should have raised me here in New York. & Really. I hate you right now. Look at those arms...
Ciao,
FEARLESS LEADER (with a fever).
PS: Kath (buddy), Anne, Chris S, Kathryn, Nancy -- I had some up close and personal, unflattering shots of you tonight (none of Anne because she is so totally photogenic), but we really did have a tech failure. I am sorry.
