My Trombone Birthday
BY PAT BURNS
It was a huge birthday surprise that I had never experienced. But that’s jumping ahead; I’ll begin from the start.
After leisurely waking up and enjoying a perfect cup of tea, I celebrated my trombone birthday by singing a once very popular song from the Broadway hit musical The Music Man – “Seventy-Six Trombones.” (Ya get it?)
My Colorado daughter had flown home so we could both celebrate our birthdays together. Her birthday is two days before mine. I had made reservations at a quaint restaurant that sits on the sand in the exquisite artistic town of Laguna Beach, CA. With the Pacific Ocean waves pounding the beach and stylish and delicious breakfast items on their menu, it is one of our favorite places for celebrations.
Once we were dressed and heading out for our special day, we thought about the overwhelming number of plans we were hoping to make that day and sadly realized it would be best to cancel our fancy Laguna Beach breakfast reservation. Still in a happy mood and wanting an enjoyable breakfast, we headed to Newport Beach to a small, 67-year-old, hole-in-the-wall café that sits adjacent to the water where yachts of all sizes are docked and gently bobbing.
The Galley Café is a hidden gem and a local favorite. It’s a first-come, first-served place, and we hoped the line wouldn’t last long. We also wondered if the accessibility and seating would accommodate my companion’s wheelchair. Luckily, they had a ramp, and two end seats were open at the counter. We got ahead of the line as others waited for one of the six booths. Because the end seat had no back, I could plop directly onto the end seat and slide to the next one over. Luckily, that seat had a back that protected me from falling off. Even though getting into the café and sitting took some effort, we were both super excited about how we could easily access and be quickly seated. And the luck just kept on happening. For instance, it was lucky they offered one of my favorite (but rare) breakfast meals on their menu.
When I was younger and had been out drinking with friends, we’d often end up at Denny’s at 1:00 a.m. for chicken fried steak and eggs – which we thought would help us manage with hangovers that might prevent us from getting to work the next day. In memory of those scruffier times, that is what I ordered. My daughter ordered a healthier spinach, tomato, and feta cheese omelet. Both came with crispy hash browns and a slice of sourdough toast. Everything was made to perfection.
Being in a celebratory mood, I asked our counter waitress if she would take our photo. Wanting to capture the entire café experience, I asked her to take the shot from the opposite end of the counter, away from where we were perched. She was glad to do so. With a happy smile, I boastfully announced to everyone at the long counter that we were celebrating our birthdays, and I wanted them in the picture, too. Everyone joined the fun!
“With music from the 50s and 60s playing in the background, my daughter and I enjoyed our time together, the yummy meals, and…”
Pulling two twenties from my bag, I waved our waitress over to pay our bill. She looked at us and announced, “It was already paid.” I said, “What do you mean?” She said, “Someone at the counter paid for both of your breakfasts.” I asked again, “Wait, what do you mean?!” She said, “Pay it forward.”
This trombone birthday will always be remembered. Who needs a parade when loving and generous people are around to help make a birthday memorable?
The Galley, or as some people call it “Eddies Galley,” has been offering “plan ole good cooking” since 1957, and on that day, they also served up good, good, good vibrations. And, just like the feel-good song by the Beach Boys says, I plan to keep those lovin’ good vibrations a-happenin’.
