Much to my surprise, birthday week continued the whole week (I should have known). Right now, I’m with Caroline in San Francisco. Inside the Apple store no less. More updates later.

DAY 1
For all you player haters, here’s a recap of birthday weekend, part two.
Friday – Caroline and I boarded a Southwest flight bound for Oakland International Airport. Departure time, 730a; it was a very smooth and empty flight. We got above the LA fog and I knew it was going to be quite a weekend. We landed at 830a, took the AIRbart to the BART station, and took the BART to Powell in San Francisco.

Our first order of the day, eat. This was going to be a PT (public transportation) trip and we walked to our first stop, but that restaurant was closed. So we found another mom and pop place and had a tasty little breakfast. We purchased a three-day MUNI pass (to ride the bus and cable cars) and headed to the new Apple Store. Great as always. Then we hopped on the Trolley and headed to our hotel. We got off the trolley at Lombard Street (the curviest street – a claim to fame) and walked four blocks, downhill, to the hotel. It was around 1230p and a sunny day, about 84 degrees. We were ready for a nap, so nap we did.

We woke refreshed and we attacked Pier 39 (it was closest), ate the customary Chowder in a Bread Bowl, walked along the pier and talked. We moved toward Ghirardelli Square, shared a banana split and headed back to the hotel. It was a great day. I felt like I was on The Amazing Race. I slept from 10p till 9a. Caroline did the same.

DAY 2
We picked up some Danish and Nutragrain Bars from the hotel lobby (free continental breakfast) and head out the door. We had another full day planned. It was 10a when we got started. We took the bus to the California Palace of the Legion of Honor to see the Art Deco exhibit. A great exhibit. We stayed about two hours and headed to Alamo Square for some lunch. When we got off the bus, we found cafe and grabbed some lunch. Alamo Square followed by a walk to Height, and a short bus ride to Ashberry. Vintage clothing and coffee was what we were in search of. We found both.

While we were waiting for the bus to take us to the Castro District, I (in typical Montez fashion) had to pee. Restroom for customers only. No problem, we ate the great dessert before dinner, sticky rice with mango – de-lish.

That night, in the Castro District, we had French cuisine at Coto Sud. Everything in this place was great. Including the value. Next time you’re in the area, try it. Low light, good food, quick service, great conversation, this night had everything. Dinner was great, time for some after dinner drinks. Take the trolley to Market Street.

We exited and headed to the Marriott Hotel, but it was a little early so crossed the street to the second greatest building containing electronics, The Metreon. We spent about an hour in the Playstation Store. We played all the games and some pinball. Sony has a new toy, the EYE-TOY. It was way cool and we gotta hook our house up with one.

Now was time for The View. That’s the lounge on the 39th floor of the Marriott. The view was great. But we only stayed a short time. It was about 1130p and we were spent. We headed home, went to bed and were ready for day 3.

DAY 3
We got out of bed later than we hoped so we packed our stuff, grabbed some more lobby breakfast and headed back to downtown. Sunday was dim-sum breakfast and it was really very tasty. We didn’t have time to go shopping, so we boarded the BART and headed back to Oakland. We made our plane and headed home. We were home by 4pm.

Thank you Caroline, I had the greatest time. Thanks to all those who made birthday week 2004 the best week I’ve had in a long time.

So last night, as Montez Birthday week continued, Caroline and I went to Cafe Med on Sunset. The food was al-ight, it did its thing, I was tasting it. The place is very nice and I recommend sitting on the patio if you get the chance. A lot of good people watching.

So Caroline and I are chilling at the place and I notice this dude walking down the street, from the parking lot area, and he looks familiar. None other than the DAWG himself, American Idol’s own Randy Jackson (the black one, not the country singer). He walks into the restaurant and past us (duh) to the party behind us. I hear a voice, “Hi Randy!”, non other than Regul favorite, Jessica Simpson, and who’s she with, husband Nick.

So to recap, last night I had dinner with Caroline, Randy, Nick, and Jessica. The fame is totally going to my head.

Speaking of head, Jessica looked prego’s! I wonder if she knows?

So today is Saint Patrick’s Day. Known to many as a drinking holiday, St. Patrick’s Day started when a group of Irish folk decided that Mexican’s had too many customs that revolved around drinking. So, not to be out done, they got drunk. They did this for sixty-five days in a row until they could drink no more. On this day, they decided, it was too much. There was no way Mexicans, or SPICS as they were called at the time, could ever match the drinking binge they had just endured. So that day, the 17th day or the 3rd month of the year, they decided would be a holiday. Ironically, now it’s a drinking holiday and the only day Mexicans, or CHEAP LABOR as they are called now, don’t drink. So good job Irish drunks. May you bang a red-faced, pasty chick with brown hair that smells like wet sawdust.

So last night was the Lakers vs. Magic game. AKA – the birthday game. It started as a close game and T-MAC turned it into a blowout. But Kobe would have none of that and, with the team down by 15, he scored 24 in the final quarter to take the game into OT. The Lakers got their shit together and beat the Magic by 3. A great game; thanks guys.

The seats were great. Right in the middle of the Staples Center. We could see all the action. Section 301 gets a big thumbs up!

After the game, Caroline and I went to The Pantry. This place has the best T-bone steak. The chocolate cake is mighty tasty too. If you’re in downtown LA, stop by. Parking is only $1.

Well, first off. Thanks to all who participated in the Montez Birthday weekend. I had a great time and I enjoyed spending time with you all. Below is a recap of the weekend.

Friday – Canters for lunch, Rhino for dinner. Toby, Regul, Eugene, Jung, Page, and I went to the Spearmint Rhino at Downtown Los Angeles. Strippers are strippers and they looked good and smelled good – expected. Not expected, the level of shenanigans that took place to milk money out of one in our party. Then we went to Sam Woo for a 1 AM meal.

Saturday – was our 1st poker tournament at 81st street. I was nervous as hell, but everybody said they had a good time so it was grand. Minh took first place and I was first out. The party began after everybody left. We played HALO and then busted out the Fireball Island. We all got sauced and went to bed.

Sunday – was a calmer day. Caroline, Regul, and I went to Chipotle (insert picture of burrito here) for breakfast. We talked philosophy and the Destruction of Subways in a localized area. That night we dined at The Warehouse in Marina Del Rey. They have a great dessert called Banana’s Overdose.

Monday – tonight I am going to see T-MAC (Tracy McGrady) and the Orlando Magic take on your Los Angeles Lakers.

Thank you all for making this a great birthday. Now back to your regularly unscheduled lives.

Last night, Survivor was great, The Donald was good too. The Lakers play tonight. Should be a good game. The full DREAM TEAM should be on the floor. Let’s see how they play.

My birthday is Monday. That makes this my OFFICAL Birthday Weekend. Here’s what I know. Friday – tonight – we are going to a strip club somewhere in LA. Saturday, 81st Poker Tournament; Sunday, dinner with the roomies; should be a good weekend. I began my birthday fun by having lunch at Cantors Deli.

I took the 19th off for personal reasons. I could tell you the reasons, but it’s personal.

Kelly and I auditioned for Deal or No Deal. I think we did well. We will know if we made the cut by Sunday.

I hope everybody has as good a weekend as I plan on having.

Ryan sent me this link. It’s cool. If you look at the image, you can see the house I grew up in, the elementary school I went to (on the far left), and the Junior High I went to (on the lower right). What a great place to grow up.

Find your own house here.