8:12 pm

A fantastic day.

I asked DJ Volvo to join me at Sergio’s for dinner. Not only was I looking forward to seeing DJ V, which goes without saying, but I had not been to my favorite restaurant for a LONG time.

I arrived early and secured seating on the patio, as they do not take reservations for those seats. Liz, the best waitress, furnished me with the wine list, and I was happy to see that they were stocking a “baby” amarone. I went ahead and pre-ordered a bottle, since I “owed” DJ V a “good bottle of wine”…

DJ V made her arrival, on time and elegant, and we proceeded to enjoy a marvelous meal - fried spinach for an appetizer (which I winningly convinced her was finger food - it DOES taste just like potato chips), the aforementioned bottle of amarone, my usual orecchiette, and the day’s special - halibut with homemade hollandaise sauce and rice for her. This was followed by dessert - two press pots of Brazilian coffee and coconut butter cake with crème Anglaise.

Two important things happened at dinner. The first was that every time we arrived at a potential “deal breaker” moment, we would scan the other tables to see if their was someone else we would rather be dining with, and that is when we spied the man whose shaved skull was studded with nine white plastic plugs. I don’t see THAT everyday. This convinced us to just stay put and make the best of the situation.

The other event was the deadline we had self-imposed to determine if our dinner was a “date” or a date. The appointed time came, and we interrupted our amazingly witty repartee to acknowledge an evening without quotes.

Following the meal, DJ V began to tell me about her new purchase - an acoustic-electric guitar featuring “exotic wood”. She asked if I would like to “come up and see her guitar”. While that particular bait might not work for everyone, you gotta give her points for knowing her audience. Quite smooth.

And while I have not yet received MY end of the bargain, a particular promised serenade, I was granted immunity to the 11 pm curfew. That was a trade-off I was willing to accept.