The Birthday Event
Hello Friends,
I would like to start off by apologizing for the late update, but I believe it's justified. I had such a crazy week, and if my Instagram is any indication, clearly it was a ton of fun! I am so grateful for all of my friends who made this week so special for me. This was my first birthday that I didn't get to spend with my family. While I would have loved to celebrate with them in some capacity, it was super exciting to have my first adult birthday. Yes, I've had more adult-like parties over the years, but my family was always in attendance. I also feel like I have always been the one to make my birthday special for myself. I never really had a ton of friends that wanted to celebrate me. Yes, I've always had Forrest & Baily, but besides those two, it always felt like I had to force people to attend my birthday. And a lot of the time, it was just Forrest and Baily to show up. Those are real ones right there. I've also always believed that I would rather have one or two close, meaningful friendships, than have a ton of friends who aren't as present in my life.
This year was different though. I really feel like I am finding my place in the world, as well as MY people. As you know, less than a year ago I met two of my, now, best friends through Tiktok...I wouldn't believe me either. Kennedy and Vanesa (a.k.a The Glee Girlies) were two strangers on the internet about a year ago and now we're harassing cute boys in hotel lobbies together...i'll fill you in on that one another time. Despite us all living in different places in the country, we still managed to get together, not once, but twice now. We truly have a bond that, even, distance can't break. We always say that it was evil for the universe to make us such great friends and then put us in different places of the world. But now I'm starting to believe that it may be a blessing because we would probably get ourselves into way to much trouble...(I say that lovingly).
So The Girlies arrived on Wednesday, July 14th, and we hit the ground running. Vanesa, unfortunately, experienced travel hiccups, but she still pulled through. We grabbed dinner at Eataly downtown and had a drink to kick off the week. Kennedy, should have listened to Kurt Hummel when he said Lemoncello tastes like lemons and gasoline. She got this weird lemon drink that should have been called Hummel's Tires & Lube because it tasted like Burt Hummel himself bathed in lemonade after a long day at the shop. I can drink pretty much anything, but that had me down for the count.
The next day, the Forresto arrived. Forrest is my best friend from high school and we truly grew up together. We've watched each other go from insecure loners in astronomy class our senior year, to the duo everyone wishes they were. I'm just kidding....but really we did that. So he arrived Friday evening, and got dinner at my favorite Friday night spot: Adrienne's Pizza Bar. My dad discovered this place because his favorite movie is Rocky, and Adrienne is the name of Rocky's wife....So us four met up with my classmates Valeria and Zhenya for some drinks and bomb pizza. It was fun to see everyone's different dynamics clash.
The next day is party day! I had been planning this party ever since I found out the girlies were coming for my birthday. I really wanted to throw a fun party but still make it "Alexis". What is more "Alexis" than Glee? I came up with the brilliant idea of theming it after my favorite episode, Blame it on the Alcohol. It was called The Alexis Reise House Party Train-wreck Extravaganza. Check out the page dedicated to it! We spent the whole day running errands and setting up for the party. I felt bad for putting my friends to work on their vacation, but I had a vision that could not be compromised. I think it all paid off though.The first hour was just like the episode....absolutely dead. But who shows up to a party right when it starts?
No one. Eventually more people started to trickle in and let me just say, I should have bought more alcohol and pizza. We ran out so fast...The party progressed to everyone screaming show tunes and Vanesa running up and down the hallways w/ Kennedy & I chasing her. I have so many wild stories about that party....maybe i'll share them with you one day. We didn't get back to the hotel 'til 4am....
The next day, I was up and at 'em. I can't be forced to slow down if ya tried. We got breakfast at Pearl Diner then spent the day exploring Soho. We eventually ran into Sylvia in a little shop in Tribeca....we don't know who she was either, don't ask.
We finished off the night by staying in and ordering Chinese. It was so sad saying goodbye to all my friends the next day.
It's always sad when something you were looking forward to for a long time comes then goes. Despite being super sad about saying goodbye to my friends, I am just grateful I got that time to spend with them. I am so thankful that they went out for their way, spent their hard earned money, and took the time to come visit and celebrate me. I am always astonished when people go out of their way for me. I feel like I dont deserve it at times.
I wish I could show my friends how much they mean to me and how much I truly value them. As someone who never felt like I didn't have friends that valued me growing up, it's sometimes unbelievable that I do now, and I am so thankful for it. So this is a huge thank you to my friends, those who visited and to those who couldnt, for making me feel so special.
All The People I Love!
Chat soon!
-Lex
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