A la carte

How was your Valentine's Day? We finally got a table at a posh restaurant we've wanted to try ever since moving to Oxford. It has a really romantic atmosphere, especially at night when it's lit by ancient chandeliers and candles. We sat among many young and wealthy Oxford students on awkwardly sweet dinner dates.

Jeff started our own date off perfectly by accidentally setting the menus on fire.


How does a person manage to sit there calmly perusing a menu without noticing it's in flames? And that his girlfriend is urgently trying to catch his attention without rousing nearby diners to a panic? However, I upped the ante by developing crippling stomach pains just before dessert, and spending the rest of the night groaning in bed. We have a long and storied history of dinner mishaps, whether glasses crashing to the floor, inadvertent whacking of passing servers while making a grand gesture with one's hand, spectacular nosebleeds and concussive blows to the head when diving under the table to retrieve dropped cutlery. It wouldn't be romantic without feeling that, together, you have escaped mortal danger.

By the way, the British Museum is looking pretty cool lately.


This is one of my favorite things at the museum: a chess set (Scandinavian origin) found on the Isle of Lewis in 1170. It's the bored guy in the middle I really love. Dude, I can relate. (Click on picture to enlarge.)