Sharing the (Valentine's Day) Love

Last month, I suggested to Emmy that we celebrate Valentine's Day by going to dinner with our closest friends. Originally, I had this image of a very large group of people and as a result, made a reservation for fourteen at C&O Trattoria. However, the reservation time was a bit too early and I told people about the event a bit too late, so my grand ideas were reduced to a more intimate setting of seven. To be honest, I was initially a bit disappointed at the fact that only half of my good friends were going to be able to make it and that this big dinner I had in mind wasn't going to be so big any longer.

Things started to change when Jonny, who we weren't sure would be able to make it, was excused from his delivery duties so that he could make the ride with us to the restaurant. Then Chris Stanford, who I'd assumed wasn't going to come because Cary had to work late, showed up with a home-made valentine to surprise me at C&O's door and really brighten my spirits. After all the surprise guests made their debut, the eight of us (Emmy, Chris, Jonny, Tippi, Dannica, Devin, Hieu, and myself) made our way to the table for what became a fantastic dinner.

After dinner, six of us made our way down the Marina Del Rey pier where we met up with this rather strange guy who attempted, rather unsuccessfully, to take our picture. We joked around and took our time, even though the girls were rather cold, before making our way back to 'SC. Moral of the story: just because something doesn't happen exactly the way you would expect it to doesn't mean it can't be just as good.

Later, Emmy came over with a letter she wrote me and a button that her mom sent to her as a Valentine's Day present. The concept of the button is to flick the spinner located in the center and do whatever it comes to rest on, such as, 'Kiss for 30 Seconds' or 'Say Something That Will Make Your Partner Blush.' We modified a couple of the spaces a bit and ended up playing the game for over five hours! Thanks Hieu.

Overall, a Valentine's Day to remember.