Friday’s dining excursion made me reminisce about of this picture of me (age 4) with our feathered friend the pigeon – a.k.a. dinner. Here I am feeding the pigeons. Now the pigeons are feeding me. My how things have changed.

Change has been a theme this year and instead of running from it like I used to, I’ve embraced it. Earlier today Paige and I were doing some fall cleaning and hidden beneath a pile of other books I found “Your Personal Astrology Planner 2008” by Rick Levine and Jeff Jawer.  I bought it for kicks at the end of last year and I promptly forgot about it after I had a cursory look-see into the future.

Now that the majority of the year is over, I just had to thumb through it to see if reality was in alignment with the stars. Did things pan out? Was it all predestined? Of course, I went directly to November to see what was yet to come – here is an excerpt:

“Tension between responsibility and freedom may cause you to reel against the boredom of your daily routine… Short-term crises can trigger flight from a job or a breakdown in discipline.”

Wooooooo-ooohhhh …

“If you seek meaningful change, slow down and plan an escape route that will lead you to a more manageable and spiritual life.”

Admittedly, I have been chastising myself for not forming a more cognizant goal plan.  Levine and Jawer – how did you know???

“Uranus enlightening your mind with an exciting image of the future. Optimism grows from an unexpected opportunity or a surprising vision of a more fulfilling professional life … seeds your imagination with money-making ideas.”

YYYYYEEEEESSSSSS!!!!!!!!

“November gives you the energy to turn ideas into action. The shape of things to come is clearly outlined with the last of a series … the meaning of our life comes into clear focus, increasing your confidence and solidifying your commitment to achieving your goals.”

DOUBLE YYYYEEEESSSSS!!!

Astrology has always been a guilty pleasure for me. Since I am not religious, I tend to grasp on to all sorts of metaphysical interests that have nothing to do with organized religion.  Don’t get me wrong, I highly respect organized religion but I have a hard time committing to which brand of shampoo I use let alone prescribing to a central edict about the origins of all creation.  It’s too much for this poor soul to handle.

Honestly, I can’t help but admit that I am comforted by Levine & Lawer’s predictions for my astrological sign. It is another green light signaling that I am on the right track and I like to show gratitude for these funny coincidences as the happen in my day. I’ve spent years never listening to my gut instinct nor have I ever taken the time to consider the meaning of my actions and the results they manifested. I’m listening now.

But despite it all, I am off to buy “Your Personal Astrology Planner 2009.“ You know, just so I can plant a little seed of hope for next November.

Well, they ordered a feast.  Dungeness crab, stir-fried pea vines, salt and pepper squid, steamed sea bass with green onion and ginger, some dish that ended with the word “delight” and squab.  Yup, squab. They tried to pawn it off as Cornish Game hens or quail but when that baby hit the table I immediately knew what it was by the cranial structure of the birds head. That ain’t no quail.

I like to think that my palate is somewhat adventurous – I just balk at eating dishes that look back at me (please don’t eat me). Since I didn’t want to be rude I tried eating a thigh section and it was not bad … tender and moist but a little on the gamey side for my taste. The consistency was a little dense and liver-like which didn’t endear me to the dish either. My dining cohorts were loving it though.  Finger licking good.

Let me preface what happens next with a little tidbit about Asian culture.  Asians always insist that the guest of honor (aka me) gets the first serving and the best cuts of everything. That’s just the custom.  As dinner was being rounded out I noticed that the two heads of the squab were left on the plate, one with it’s beak ajar.  I thought they were just for show, but as my coworker explained, the head and neck was considered the best part of the dish.

They were saving them for me.