A Lone Star Tradition

The other night Mike and I were blessed with the chance to go on a real date--no kids for five hours--dinner and a movie. I don't think we've done both together for at least five years!

For dinner, we went to a local Tex Mex spot and enjoyed the frozen margarhettias--I even had one and half--something I almost never do since I am still nursing Spanky. I figured I should be OK if I kept munching on the stuffed jalepenos and Hatch chili quesadillas.

Anyway, next to us was a table of two middle aged couples plus a much older couple--my guess, one of the younger person's parents. The waiter stood on their bench and announced to the entire restaurant it was the older woman's birthday, her 21st birthday.

Me, being a bit happy on tequilla myself mentioned that everyone who turns 21 should have a shot of tequlia.

My ever social husband Mike turns to the birthday 'girl' and asks if she would like to do a shot. The entire table explodes in laughter and birthday girl looks directly at Mike and says "Sure".

Mike calls over the waiter and tells him what he'd like to do. A true salesman, the waiter asks if we want the good tequila since it is her '21st' birthday after all.

"Absolutely," says Mike. "1800 Cuervo."

The waiter disappears and quickly returns with a shot, mentioning to Mike and everyone else that when she got sick, Mike would have to clean it up.

The birthday girl is handed her shot of 1800, a lime and a salt shaker. The entire place is now in a trance watching her. The room is silent. 

Her daughter (or maybe daughter-in-law) softly explains how to take a shot. 

Lick, slam, suck.

The rest of the table pulls out cell phones to capture the moment on digital film.

The birthday girl looks worried.

"You know, " Mike leans over to her. "You only want to take a sip and then share it with the table. That's what you do."

She suddenly looks at ease, licks the salt on her wrist, takes a small sip and shoves the lime in her puckered mouth. The restaurant explodes in cheers. The 1800 is passed down and enjoyed by the rest of the table--the anchor man at the end finishing off the remaining 3/4.

The table cannot stop laughing and begin to discuss how to put the moment on Youtube or at least somewhere in cyberspace. The daughter (or maybe daughter-in-law) is worried her siblings will never let mom visit Texas again. 

They are having the an amazing time.

Mike and I check our watches and realize we are late for our date with The Dark Night at the movie theater across the way.

The birthday girl stops us and thanks us. She confesses she just turned 83. And she was having a great night. We wish her a happy birthday and disappear in the crowd, giddy with the joy we brought to a complete table of strangers for the cost of a shot of 1800. It was one of those random acts of kindness I hope we can repeat again and again. Maybe not in the form of alcohol but somehow, somewhere for someone.

And I have to admit I plan on googling 'old woman doing a tequila shot' to see if it ever made it to the net :)