2009

2009 is the year the Twin Palms closed in Pasadena. 11 years ago, I had my first unofficial "date" with my partner there. When I read a story in one of my many magazines about a couple that wanted to make Christmas extra special by finding things from their past to give, I thought of the Twin Palms because they were closing at the end of November after almost 16 years in business.

My friend, Pamela, and I went immediately to try and get a memento. The hostess, a young woman, was unsympathetic when I told her that I had my first date 11 years ago with my partner there and could I have a matchbook? They don’t have matchbooks anymore. A menu? No. A second host, a young man, was more sympathetic and disappeared in search of something to give me in the back. Pamela and I felt hopeful while listening to Sunday Jazz, but the young man returned empty handed. I’m sorry. There isn’t anything that I could get.

Dejected, I said, how about a napkin? Can you at least use the Twin Palms stamp on a cocktail napkin? He was enthusiastic and grabbed two napkins from the bar and put a faint imprint with the restaurant’s name on it. The ink was just about dried up.

It’s not what I had hoped, but it did remind me of a special night when the friend that I had known for many years stopped talking to me in the middle of the meal and kept staring at me, and I ate a huge pork chop as we fell in love.

I put the napkins in the Christmas stocking this year along with a photo of me in front of the Twin Palms sign at the entrance that Pamela snapped on her cell phone as we left with the two sad napkins.