It's the whole fish, Charlie Brown

I mourned the loss of my 20s on Thursday and Friday. On Saturday, Cydney and I dropped Murphy off at day care and went hauling east to New Orleans for some rejuvenation and pampering. I got a 90-minute Swedish massage, which was the best I've ever had (Spa Isbell on Magazine Street) and a facial. I have no age spots or early signs of sun damage. My skin is in need of a lot of nourishment, however.

You're not pretty when you leave the spa, so it's a good thing we decided to get a hotel room and shower, because we were slick, oily messes when we left there. They rub your head with oil on their hands during the massage and use lotions and potions on your hairline and neck during the facial. We ate lunch at Slice on St. Charles - best pizza in New Orleans no doubt and went to the Sheraton to get ready for dinner at Commander's Palace.

The best part about Commander's is how you're greeted when you go to your table. All of the waiters line the wall and say either "Good evening," "Welcome," or "Happy Birthday" as you walk by.

I just realized that my dad's tie does not photograph well. His shirt is a peach oxford that we bought him for his birthday, and the tie is peach, salmon and rust. He told Justin he looked like a smoothie.

I don't typically photograph food, but this was just too bizarre not to preserve. So, Justin ordered a whole fish, served over boudin. I've seen a whole fish, fried with the bones and the head and the tail. But...

This bastard is SITTING upright on the plate, bent like it was dropped in the deep fryer mid-swim. I mean, I looked at it in alarm for several minutes before I could begin my food.

My birthday meal is always the same, regardless of the restaurant. A filet mignon, cooked medium, with some kind of potato (in this case, French potato puree) and Bearnaise sauce.

My parents brought down a strawberry shortcake from Whole Foods. I was feeling festive, so I wore the hat.

My dad likes cosmopolitans, and he says it takes a man who's very comfortable with himself to drink a cosmo and look like a smoothie. Our waiter even made sure Dad understood what color it was before he brought it out to him.

Damn, that tie really does not photograph well.

For my birthday, my parents got me a new beautiful Kate Spade purse.

Corey bought me a print of the Baton Rouge riverfront from 1938 painted by a local artist (and he'll be finding out about this gift when he reads this post!)

And I am giving myself a DNA genetic profile from Ancestry.com. They send you the kit to do the mouth swab, and they test your DNA for differently ethnicities and map it all for you. They'll even give you the names of profiled people you're matched with!

COREY UPDATE: He has arrived safely in Kuwait. They are sleeping on cots in big tents, 60 soldiers to a tent. Somehow, you can buy an internet card that miraculously provides you with spotty internet connection in the big tent, so he is able to email and Facebook in Kuwait. We haven't Skyped yet. He has to walk 3/4 of a mile to the phone center. Don't think it's too primitive though. He's had Chinese food from a restaurant and Philly cheese steaks from another restaurant this weekend. We won't have a mailing address for him until he gets to his permanent home, and that could be a couple days to a couple weeks. He's supposed to be posting on the blog, but I'll wait until he gets permanent before I nag him about that.