Birthday Madness

My actual birthday was pretty low-key – it included a thwarted attempt to visit the new Ben & Jerry's Boutique in Tanglin Village, which is closed on Monday nights (boo! don't they know that one needs cookie dough ice cream on one's 30th birthday?) – because my real party is tomorrow. We're kicking things off with a BBQ, and then 20 of our closest friends will embark on a Bar Crawl around Singapore's finest drinking establishments. (Should you see a group of inebriated folks dressed in matching royal blue t-shirts with a weeping Merlion on the front, come say hi!) The BBQ portion is pretty simple, food-wise – burgers, dogs, potato salad, and other American favorites – so I'm putting more energy into the décor. It's leaning towards a retro-picnic-y style: vintage tablecloths (above), little bouquets of bright flowers, old-school Pyrex, scattered votives. After all, if you're going to turn 30, then you might as well do it with a little class.

Because after all, nothing says "class" like a bar crawl. Erm.