Sunday, January 31, 2010

On Turning 50-Celebrating with Friends

So we celebrated in Nashville last night and here's what my good friend Chip Smith had to say about our little party of 12 people:

Just got up a bit ago from my SECOND nap of the day. We had a BLAST! What a memorable night shared with a great cast of characters and friends! We are so glad that we could be there to celebrate MO's big 5-0! Any time you want to rent a country music star's bus, crack open some Dom, taste some great bourbons,  hit the disco, and go for a little late night karaoke in Printer's Alley count us in.Thanks so much for letting us be a part of such a momentous occasion!


With the assistance of Tom Sturdeyvant of Sedan on Demand, we had a progressive dinner party, and well, er um, after party too. We started at Whiskey Kitchen for appetizers and a bourbon tasting, followed by salad and dinner at Allium Cafe in East Nashville. We were chauffeured around in Alan Jackson's old black tour bus that Sedan on Demand now owns and rents (Sedan on Demand is a highly recommended vendor) . Our dinner was accompanied with some great wines, the most interesting being a 2002 magnum of Divine, courtesy of Sylvia Roberts, who owns this label in Napa. After dinner, we journeyed back over the Cumberland and wound up at a trio of late night spots. The first stop was Hollywood Disco where we were all moving and grooving as best we can these days (pure unadulterated 70's fun), followed by live music at Loser's (basically next door). Loser's was a great atmosphere with an entertaining house band playing mostly country rock hits from the 80's and 90's. We worked our way up front by the band because there was no stage, which added to the honky tonk feeling of this roudy collegiate atmosphere bar. Our final stop was Lonnie's Karaoke bar in Printer's Alley. I'd never been to a karaoke bar, and found it quite entertaining. Lonnie's has a stage right behind the bar so those poor souls who want to embarrass themselves get up in the middle of the place and belt out to their heart's content. My business partner, Shawn Thomas sang an old Journey song. He sang pretty well, but not as well as a rendition of My Girl that had the whole place singing, from another patron, to the best of my recollection. With the clock fast closing in on 2:00 AM, we headed back towards the burbs in our swanky tour bus. We had originally planned on late night dessert and cappuccino but alas, we were all ready to head to our respective homesteads.


All in all, it was a truly unforgettable evening with the fabulous company of Chip and Mary Loch Smith, Shawn Thomas and Carla Stokes, Jeff and Mary Ellen Morris, Mike and Claire Robbins, Peter and Kim Oldham, and lastly Louis and Cynthia Kirkpatrick who thought the snow was going to cancel the event, so they ended up being no shows, the little weenies. It was definitely their loss.


 And in case you're wondering, we will have a much larger celebration in May, entitled  "125 reasons to celebrate" --100 years of combined living for Sharon and myself plus 25 years of marriage. If you are reading this, you will most certainly be on "The List" , since my blog is not that widely read, because I don't promote it , but that's another topic altogether. 


And I'd just like to say publicly on my blog about how much I value the support and love from my wife,  Sharon , for over 25 years of marriage. Thanks for all you do! We had a blast on my 50th!