...my head hurts

Welcome to 2006, loyal readers. I know I promised a year-end wrap up, but my head still has My Hump thumping in it and I'm a little too groggy to be retrospective right now. I can do the next best thing, however, and recall the details of last night...something not everyone can brag about.

As the orchestra was about to play off the overblown acceptance speech for Best Cinematography that was 2005, I got together with my good friends, Chris, Allyson, and Jeff for dinner at Tunnicliff's in DC. Seated to our left, was a table of police officers...in uniform. To our right, a table of priests...in uniform. All we needed was a table of rabbis and we could've had a re-enactment of the greatest joke ever written. Tunnicliff's had one of the greatest deals of New Year's Eve. For $20.06, you get an appetizer, soup or salad, entree, and dessert. Spinach dip, caesar salad, NY strip steak, and a brownie sundae...I was one step shy of taxidermy, I was so stuffed.

From there, Chris and I parted ways with Allyson and Jeff and headed to The Ugly Mug for the drunken countdown to '06. We staked out some primo real estate in the middle of the bar...if people wanted to have fun, they had to go through us. As we started on our first of four pitchers for the evening, a menagerie of furry friends joined the merriment. I'll try to paint the picture... 5 people: one in a pink bunny suit, one in a Frosty the Snowman suit, one in a gingerbread man suit, one in a bear suit, and a guy in a chicken suit... It was like the bar scene from Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas by way of the Mickey Mouse Club. So, we'd barely begun dulling our senses, and the Heffalumps and Woozles stroll in to get the night jumpstarted. The night got louder and more raucous as the year slowly faded away. Chris and I began chatting up two lovely ladies, Emily and Nikki...we hung with them for the rest of the night. On the TVs, Regis Philbin rang in the new year. At one point, he was speaking live-via-satellite with Donald Trump...y'know, nothing screams 2006 like two guys who's combined age is 2006. Unfortunately, there was no kiss at midnight, but there was beer spilled on us at 1:45, so at least one tradition wasn't ignored. As the night crept toward last call, some very demonstrative gals decided to practice for their Girls Gone Wild audition and began dancing and gyrating on the bar. It would've been hot, if they weren't so sloppy drunk. Emily remarked, "They're like Coyote Ugly." I replied, "You're half right." ZING!

A good night was had by all. Easily, the best New Year's Eve I've been a part of in the last three years...Top 5 all time. It's tough to top the trifecta of good food, good fun, and good people.

So, what is my New Year's resolution? To stop procrastinating. Actually, the was my resolution for '03 but, no time like the present, eh? Here's to everyone who made '05 fly by so fast. To the new friendships and the rekindled ones. To Johnny, Richard, and Mitch... To The Riddler, Scotty, and Mr. Miagi... To everyone who laughed at me in '05, may you not tire of me in '06.

To be continued...