Birthday Report

I had a lovely birthday, thanks for asking!
I swam in the morning, did some shopping with MB, had a delicious (delicious!) vegetarian lunch (a cashew coconut curry with portabellos and other grilled veggies and brown rice. so! good!), and then went to see "Happy-Go-Lucky" with friends.
First, I love Mike Leigh. I've loved everything he's done except "Naked," which I hated. I loved "HGL" because of its spirit, or what one reviewer called its "invitation to find joy and grace in everyday moments." One reviewer called its pace "leisurely" and I have to agree. But I quite enjoyed the way the movie meandered through Poppy's life and I really, really loved the scene with the Flamenco teacher, which was sad and hilarious at the same time. I heard Leigh on NPR ("On Point") a few weeks ago, and one of the callers made the point that the movie was about teachers (Poppy teaches grade school, she has the Flamenco teacher and a driving instructor), and it is, but it is also about world views. My companions wondered aloud whether they loved Poppy or wanted to kick her in the teeth, but I definitely loved her. I think it's because, as the movie progresses, I came to see the ways in which she is open to the joy around her, but it's not because she ignores the pain, but rather that she tries to understand it, or temper it. I highly recommend this film. It was a great birthday film!
We had a pretty regular dinner, and the wine I've been wanting to try, Sofia (Coppola), which is a sparkling white wine. On the label it says "coming of age, bestowing of presence, petulant, revolutionary, reactionary, poetic, sparkling, ebullient, effervescent, fragrant, cold, cool" which I think describes the wine and/or the woman it takes its name from but which I hope also describes me. I didn't notice the words when I bought it, but it seemed appropriate when I finally read them. In any case, we loved the wine, more than champagne, and will be drinking it again soon!
A friend came over and brought cupcakes, which I think are the best thing ever. They are small, we each had one, and then no leftovers to consume. We chatted with her, then put Son to bed, and then we watched "Forgetting Sarah Marshall" because it's what we had. MB and I loved it, with no reservations. It had some cringe worthy moments, and we laughed out loud, a lot. As far as I could tell, there was nothing, nothing wrong with that movie. I loved that it featured male nudity but very little female nudity.
So all in all, a great birthday. I go to Vegas tonight, which I am really looking forward to.