Friday, September 28, 2007
Gus's 30th Birthday Roast
In my typical fashion of posting event write-ups over a month after they happen, here's a quick run-down of Gus's amazing birthday bash at Prague in Austin, Texas. Not everything went according to plan (it never does), but the general consensus was positive, and no lives or limbs were lost.
To put it bluntly, this party was freakin' huge. I secured the club for a private party, hosted an open bar, and spent many, many moons preparing. It was a lot like planning a wedding, except I expected nothing of my guests and no one got any new jewelry. All the unexpected occurrences and ups and downs may have made for a good reality show, though. I never went "Bridezilla" on anyone, but I did get to Austin a week early and spent more time driving places and calling people than I ever have in my life. In fact, I was still working shit out at the party:
I was on the phone with the dj, who was really nice and didn't ask for money. Although, it turned out we didn't need him to do anything since we couldn't hook up a microphone for use on the stage, so everyone just stood in front of the dj booth and took turns passing the mic around. Of course, I had this great vision of Hugh Hefner's roast and wanted to mimmic that. But when dealing with that issue and all the others that came up before it, I kept in mind that no one at the party really cares but me and that did wonders to preserve my sanity.
Somehow, despite my penchant for procrastination, the Gus-themed stickers, t-shirts, and magnets all managed to make it to Austin before the party. The picture below is the magnet. The stickers and t-shirts got plenty of photo ops, but unfortunately, none of our friends have a metal ass.
Chuy's had my giant food order ready (mmm... Chuy's), and I provided tons of appetizers and snacks because my biggest fear is having a party and running out of food and drinks. If you have a party and don't get enough refreshments for your guests, you might as well stamp "LAME" on your forehead and jump off a bridge.
Most importantly, Gus had three cakes. Cake is the best part of any birthday, and if you're turning 30, you need to have more than one. Cake number one was Gus's favorite, carrot cake, from one of the best bistro/bakeries in town, Chez-Zee. Cake number two was my favorite, a doberge cake from Gambino's Bakery in New Orleans. I had it shipped, which is never ideal for a cake in August. Despite the melt-factor, it was still delicious. Cake number three was a large sheet cake from HEB, which you see here. As we all continue party planning through adulthood, let's remember that candles portraying large numbers are far superior to a large number of candles.
Once our time at the club was up and the fantastic plastics started showing up, we all headed to Mugshots, home of the best jukebox in town. Eric was awesome and helped me move everything out of there in hurry. While I'm at it, big thanks to McP and Daniel for helping me transport tables and chairs when needed, and to Phil and Sonya for keeping the cakes in their fridge so they could be enjoyed later and we could stay out that night and keep drinking. Gus thanks a bunch of people in his blog too, and I ditto those. If we forgot someone, please know that we're thankful to you too, and we really enjoyed hanging out with everyone who showed up to celebrate with us. Y'all keep making Austin a harder place to leave.
Kevin and Amy took some excellent pictures, which I gratefully appreciate, since I didn't have much time to take pictures myself.
And here is an uber-set of pictures from my camera, Katie's camera, and one of the disposable ones I got for the party, which Johann thankfully used up and handed me for safekeeping before I got too drunk. I am really, really happy that people took pictures. I love looking that them after the fact, but I never want to take them while the action is actually happening. Thanks a million, guys! Sidenote: If you want to be flickr friends, befriend platkat.
