A night on the town

We bought tickets for Les Misérables quite a while ago. When Sweetie got laid off (many school districts are squeezed this year), I added on dinner at our favourite place to help cheer her up.

Well, just the other day, Sweetie got recalled for a good position. Meanwhile, I got the news that I was probably a long way from an assessment for surgical readiness (I wish they knew how ready I am now). So dinner and theatre turned out to be a celebration because of Sweetie's job and a much-needed lift for me.

As I've mentioned before, Vancouver is often a style disaster. But for a nice dinner and a play, many people do make the effort. We certainly did. As you can see, I finally got to wear my "Project Runway Canada" dress, one of two I got on sale from Winners (the other is black). The curves aren't quite there yet, I know, but now that my testosterone has been beaten into submission, maybe fat redistribution will go better. At least I managed to get rid of most of the accumulation in the middle. That was also my first attempt at putting my hair up, and it wasn't quite what I wanted, but no matter. I will experiment with that now that I know I have enough hair to play with. Oh, and I love those shoes—cork wedge sandals with four-inch heels, amazingly comfortable. I don't get to wear them very often.

Sweetie looked gorgeous herself in a black halter dress with a full skirt, a bit "Marilyn Monroe" style, that she bought a couple of years ago at a lovely little boutique in Portland, Oregon. As reluctant as she is to actually use her camera, she is adamant that I take no pictures of her, which is a shame. So I have the picture in my head.

Dinner was at CRU, where they know our names. Seriously. We seem to have our own personal server there. He knows us, knows what we like, gives us great conversation without being intrusive, and makes excellent wine recommendations. We think he's the greatest waiter EVAR. Our starter was a spot prawn salad. Spot prawns are local prawns (large shrimp), and these were literally only a few hours out of the water. They were served over greens, marinated red onion, thin sliced radishes, with an avocado-coconut puree and pine nuts. It's hard to imagine how anyone would dream up such a combination, but it worked beautifully. We followed that with pan-seared halibut (also local) paired with a rosé from Joie Farms, a Naramata winery we're really coming to appreciate. Dessert was a chocolate mousse cake with peanut butter mascarpone—don't knock it till you've tried it! CRU is a small place, fairly quiet even when it's full, as it was last night, so you can actually talk. There are many reasons we go back there more often than to any other haute cuisine restaurant in this area.

Les Misérables was amazing. We know some of the music already, and not just because of Susan Boyle. It often shows up in figure skating routines. I had not realized that this show really has no book. All the dialogue is in song, like an opera. Constant entertainment! There were many fine voices in the cast, even in the ensemble. The actor who played Jean Valjean had a beautiful tenor voice countered by Javert's very strong baritone. The woman who played Fantine did a wonderful job with "I Dreamed a Dream," and later the woman who played Éponine brought me to tears with "On My Own." The Thénardiers, first disreputable innkeepers then later petty thieves in Paris, were very funny. The boy who played Gavroche, the street urchin, was a surprisingly strong singer. We've never seen the show on Broadway, but this worked for us.

Sweetie is thrilled to be employed again, in a better situation than she was this past year. I am still not thrilled to be facing such a long wait to see the psychiatrists. But last night helped get me out of my wallowing. And I felt pretty, whatever the photograph shows. I'd never worn a dress like that before or put my hair up. It was all very affirming.