After our original plans for tonight failed to materialize, The Four Musketeers--Pam, Jenn, Jen and me--went out to dinner. First, we had to make a stop at H&M, a Sweden-based clothing store that apparently is the complement to Sweden-based IKEA. The thing is, at H&M, you don't have to assemble the clothes yourself. Jenn and Jenn made out like bandits, but Pam and I chose not to buy anything. I thought about picking up a pair of jeans, but I didn't want to look too Swedish and be forced to go blonde and blue-eyed.
With a sheet of paper in hand listing restaurants near our hotel, we finally decided to eat at this trendy place called The Gage. We had a 30-minute wait, and during that time, the question being bounced around was what famous actor/actress do we all look like? Earlier in the day on the trade show floor, someone came up to the red-headed Jenn (Shaver, not Ray) during her talk with a manufacturer and said, "Didn't you win the Oscar for "The Hours?" Aren't you Julianne Moore?"
First of all, Nicole Kidman won the Oscar for "The Hours," not Julianne Moore, who did get an Oscar nomination for the film. Second of all, I believe the guy who asked the question won an Oscar for the acclaimed film "Doofus Interruptus."
We finally sat down at our table, and after all the talk of who looks like a famous person, our waiter arrived. Much to our surprise, it was Danny Bonaduce! Swear to God! If it wasn‘t him, it had to have been his long lost twin. The red hair. The goatee. The energy. Everything!
But this Danny Bonaduce was much nicer and didn't feel the urge to throw any of us over his shoulder. He was the type of waiter who really, really enjoyed his job. He did such a good sell job on the halibut and risotto specials that two of us had the halibut and two of us had the risotto. Then came the desserts (delivered by Susan Dey), and all four of us shared our four different selections. My chocolate torte was voted the best. My tummy agreed.
After the bill arrived and David Cassidy took our plates, we headed out, and we thought we were never going to see Danny Bonaduce again. That was, until he followed us out the door because one of us (who shall remain nameless) forgot to sign the check. It was a clear oversight, and it in no way diminished our appreciation for our very own Danny Bonaduce (look-alike).