Ryan's Journal

Since putting a bird feeder outside several months ago the house has become a bit of a Disney movie – finches gather by the dozen, ducks hang out looking for spilled seeds, and increasingly-round squirrels discover surprising ways of invading the feeder. After our third feeder became a victim of the squirrels – they somehow managed to chew off a metal perch – the sad decision was made to move to a more squirrel-proof feeder. The Squirrel Buster 9000 arrived a few days ago, and this picture (by Audrey) does a decent job of capturing the frustration of our furry little friends.

Many moons ago Audrey and I were watching one of those odd shows on Discovery Channel – the ones that follow documentaries like “Impaled!” – and they had a bit about a restaurant where you eat in complete pitch darkness with a waiter who is legally blind. While, in the past, I have disparaged LA, one of the very good things about this city is that when you see something odd on TV there’s a high probability that it was either filmed here or has since been copied by someone in this vast metropolis. As it turns out, Opaque operates in Santa Monica, and thus it was that for Valentine’s Day 2010 Audrey ate in complete darkness while I secretly stole her silverware and wine glass.

For those willing to spend a lot of money on a meal that you’ll probably end up eating with your hands, there are locations elsewhere including San Francisco. Note that if your date wants you to “dress nice” since it’s a fancy place, bear in mind that you’ll more than likely discover that you’re wearing some of your meal by the time you leave, unless of course you’re a pro like me. Also, relax your eyes as soon as you sit down; it’s too dark to see anything, and after a half hour I was getting a headache from inadvertently trying to focus. Finally, careful when reaching for the bread bowl – there’s a cup of butter in the middle of it. Here’s a YouTube video that somewhat captures the experience.