Social Butterflies

I remember when going to a friend's birthday meant picking up a six-pack, or a bottle of wine if it was really fancy, doning my nicest pair of jeans and standing around someone's kitchen or a local drinking hole, waiting for the burgers to cook.

Last weekend, Larry and I went to our first dress-coded birthday party for our friend Brett. I'd never heard of "Chinese Cocktail Chic" , but figured our tailor had. Of course, like with most things, I waited until the last minute and was concerned the dress wouldn't be finished in time. No worries as it turned out as I do believe they thrive on deadlines. Larry had his attire all planned and pressed.

We had roughly thirty minutes to transform ourselves from International Day patrons to glitzy party goers. Thankfully, Mr. Liu is perhaps the fastest driver in Suzhou, maybe even Jiang Su province.
Upon arrival we were directed to the Presidential Suite and handed a glass of champagne. Delicate music from a chinese string quartet played softly in the background as we mingled with friends. Everyone was complimenting each other on their mode of dress. We strolled through the courtyard, where the servers were busy slicing roasted duck, and past the kitchen as the general manager put the finishing touches on the seafood buffet. The large outdoor patio was filled with tables that overlooked the hotel.

Natalie, Brett's wife, was the perfect hostess. She'd planned the entire shindig and left nothing to chance. Emails from far away friends, a cute movie from his Aussie co-workers and toasts that warmed even the coldest hearts made for a lovely evening. We even met some new folks towards the end of the evening. A very distinguishable southern accent was detected, so we introduced ourselves. The couple was from Alabama and had us laughing the entire shared taxi rode home. His accent is a combination of Larry the Cable Guy and Paula Dean. He and my Larry instantly hit it off. While getting dressed up every once and a while is fun, according to them, "You can take the boy out of the country, but you can't take the country out of the boy".