happy birthday, scott!

yesterday was scott's 30th birthday! and it was the second birthday he celebrated in amsterdam...pretty lucky. i think that he was okay with the fact that this year, he did not have the big blow-out party he would have have if we were in seattle. i think we both are, for a number of reasons...we're both enjoying just having each other for the first time in our relationship. it's pretty fun to know that we have a great time, even if it is just the two of us.

i met him at centraal at 5. well, actually i was there at 5 and he got there at 6:15. it's crazy that we're back to the days when you didn't have the luxury of calling to let someone know you're going to be late, and your unable to call and say "where the fuck are you, you're late, and i'm freezing!" it's a strange reality to just wait, and know that he'll be there when he can. turns out, he was late because he got his first deal in ,and had to stay at work late to finalize things...i can certainly forgive him for that!

it was nice out so we walked over to the jordaan, after hitting-up a coffee shop..., to have a couple of drinks at this brown cafe i'd been reading about. the cafe was called cafe 't smalle, and it was just perfect. they are called "brown" cafes because their walls are stained a brown color due to literally centuries of tobacco smoke. the people inside where almost all dutch...a good sign to a local favorite. we ordered a couple of heineken's (on tap!) and sat down at a little table next to two dutch women. the ladies were pretty funny, and they chatted with us for awhile. it took them a bit to understand that we actually lived in amsterdam, but once they did, they liked us even better. amsterdammers have a reputation for being a little "cocky," according to our landlord, danny, but we're in their city, so it doesn't bother me at all. i just think it makes them more interesting...and these two were certainly interesting!

after a couple of drinks, we set off to meet up with scott's life-long friend, jesse, who was in town with a bunch of his fraternity brothers. we met him at a little bar near the anne frank huis for a few more drinks and some laughs. i had only met jesse once, but it was great seeing him again...i think having someone here from home, no matter who it is, will always be a highpoint.