The Dinner Club

My first year in law school, I had this group of friends, and we started what we called the Dinner Club. Once a week, we'd go out to dinner, and we'd take turns picking new restaurants. At first, it was just me, Aimée, Anita, Bessie, and Alex. Slowly but surely, though, people started inviting others to join the Dinner Club. Alex invited his friend Spencer one night. Who then invited his friend Chris. Who happened to be Anne Rice's son. Anne Rice, the vampire author.

We went to dinner with Chris, and it was getting close to Mardi Gras. Chris casually mentioned we should stop by the house during the Mardi Gras season, any time we wanted. The house was always open. Next thing I knew, Spencer was pressing an id tag into my hand in the hallway at school. This wasn't just a casual stop-by! My name would be on a list, and there would be security at the front door checking my fancy Chris Rice-issued id. I could bring up to 3 guests with me each night. And the house was open every night for two weeks, any time there was a parade on St. Charles Avenue.

Well, the first night we stopped in, we had a great time, and we stayed after all the other guests had left. Someone mentioned there was another parade going on in Metairie, a suburb of New Orleans. Chris says, "I've got a car everyone will fit in.... let me get it."

We all go outside. And up pulls a limo. We all pile in, and go to the parade. The driver waits to take us home, but on the way home, Aimée and I realize we haven't eaten much that night, and were hungry. We stop at a gas station, run in, buy Hubig's lemon pies and Cokes.

When we get back into the car, Chris said, "I noticed all these people on the street were watching you two get out of the car and buy your lemon pies. It always happens when I take the limo - they're trying to figure out who you are! They think you must be famous if you can take the limo to the gas station."

How fabulous is that.

I was invited to the party the following year, but some of the magic was lost. The Dinner Club had sort of fallen apart, and I wasn't as close to them as I had been the year before. Some shady stuff had gone down at the party the year before by others, and so we were no longer allowed to bring guests.

But seriously, I'll always remember the first year. It was great.