Akemi’s birthday…

Picking up a selection of home made marshmallows at Achimallows pop-up stand.
Picking up a selection of home made marshmallows at Archimallows pop-up stand.
The selection
The selection

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Birthday lunch at Bel Cafe. Banh Mi for me.
Birthday lunch at Bel Cafe. Banh Mi for me.
And spicy chicken salad and a matcha latte for Akemi.
And spicy chicken salad and a matcha latte for Akemi.
And some hazelnut drags to go. I'm a sucker for those complimentary samples.
And some hazelnut dragees to go. I’m a sucker for those complimentary samples.
New running shoes, a.k.a. new chew toys for Lulu.
New running shoes, a.k.a. new chew toys for Lulu.
Then, over to Main Street to check out the Candy Meister truck.
Then, over to Main Street to check out the Candy Meister truck.

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And, of course, her favorites - and the reason we chase this truck around town - the handmade marshmallows.
And, of course, her favorites – and the reason we chase this truck around town – the handmade marshmallows.
An afternoon walk/roll with the dogs.
An afternoon walk/roll with the dogs.
Doggy bath time.
Doggy bath time.
Sushi dinner at Miku Restaurant
Sushi dinner at Miku Restaurant
Drinks. For her, some sort of Yuzi liquor.
Drinks. For her, some sort of Yuzi liquor.
For me, the sake sampler.
For me, the sake sampler.
And the "lotus root salad" that was served, completely devoid of lotus roots. When I asked about this, I was informed that they were out. Really?
And the “lotus root salad” that was served, completely devoid of lotus roots. When I asked about this, I was informed that they were out. Really? On the bright side, our sushi was served with the expected fish.
And, instead of birthday cake, Akemi opted for birthday gelato at Bella Gelateria. Yes, it's that good!
And, instead of birthday cake, Akemi opted for birthday gelato at Bella Gelateria. Yes, it’s that good!

Continuing our Stargate: Atlantis re-watch with…The Prodigal!

1Another Carl Binder-san spectacular.  I loved this episode even more on repeat viewing.  It’s got action, humor, and high-stakes developments with all of our characters in play (even Zelenka, Lorne, and Amelia Banks).  Fast-paced fun!

And Akemi agreed.  She laughed out loud a couple of times, jumped at others, and seemed just as anxious as Teyla when she was in hiding with her baby.  The night time establishers of the city all lit up never fail to amaze, and the “really cool fighting scenes” in this one wowed her as well, especially the final showdown at the top of the tower (Again, thanks to Mark Savela and our VFX crew and James Bamford and our stunts crew).  Her only quibble with this episode: “I’m so sad I didn’t see any scenes with Jewel.  Where’s Jewel?”  I dunno.  Night off?

She was at her most animated when Sheppard almost tumbles off the tower and is left dangling: “Now Mike Dopud can take over team!”

When Teyla approaches Michael hanging on by his fingertips: “Kick him off.”

And when she does just that: “What?!  He isn’t really dead, is he?”  And when I informed her that, yes, he was: “Wow.  Michael die.  Are you sure?  Who will they fight?”  No one!  The last six episodes of the final season will feature scenes of them sitting around, talking about their feelings.

And a closing observation as the end credits started to roll: “Sheppard never die, ne?  Don’t you think so?  Why not?”

31 thoughts on “April 18, 2014: Akemi’s birthday festivities!Our Stargate Atlantis re-watch continues with…The Prodigal!”

  1. Since I’ve not yet learned the appropriate Japanese greeting:
    ¡Feliz cumpleaños a Doña Akemi!

    Reply

  4. Akemi, Happy Birthday to you, happy birthday to you!!, Looks like you had a wonderful time celebrating, yummy and thanks for sharing it with us.!!

    Reply

  8. Happy Birthday Akemi! I hope it was a good one for you. The selection at Miku looked good, but I haven’t tried the Saki sampler…I’ll have to look for that the next time we go. Barb favors the fruity drinks, while I like mine dry.

    Bella Gelateria always comes through, though.

    I’ll have to give The Prodigals a re-watch tonight…maybe after everyone settles in for the night. With Akemi’s dissatisfaction with Shepherd, I am wondering if she’ll like the end of Vegas.

    Reply

  9. Happy Birthday Akemi!! Have a grand year! 🙂

    Loved Prodigal, great to see Teyla being the kickass mom she is.
    (Still very much differing with Akemi though, one of the reasons I liked it so much was no Keller! I particularly loved the race car scenes with McKay and Sheppard. Also, if Sheppard had ever truly been killed off, no matter what other developments happened, I’d have been out. You might want to skip Vegas…)

    Reply

  12. @ Akemi – Be sure and stretch out your birthday a couple more weeks like Joe does his. 😉

    Reply

  13. お誕生日おめでとうございます。 いつもきれいでいますように。
    Feliz Cumpleños Akemi!
    Happy Birthday Akemi!

    Reply

  17. Oh my, that looks like one fantastic birthday celebration! What do you have planned for the rest of the weekend? A birthday is more than one day. 😉

    JeffW: Thanks for the info about barnacles. They know a lot more about heartworms but not everything. I’ve seen 3 month old puppies with heartworm larvae (it’s supposed to take 6-7 months for the h.w.’s to start reproducing). I’ll still ask my vet friend about it but barnacles aren’t something we see a lot of (or any) around here. If there were barnacles here, I’m sure they’d be breaded and deep fried! As Ponytail said, Everything is better fried, right?

    Reply

  18. Happy birthday, Akemi! What a day! Although I can scarcely believe it’s your birthday – you still look too young to have those!

    I really enjoyed The Prodigal, however ever time I watch it I am annoyed at the first scene where Teyla is surprised by the remote racers. Could she not hear them from a long way away? Also, watch where you’re going, girl!

    Anyway, I did feel bad in a way for Michael, in that he really was a monster of their own making. However, I figure he was still aware of right and wrong, and the stuff he did is not easily dismissed. I guess if the SG team really were evil they would have just offed him right away when the initial experiment went awry.

    Reply

  20. oh my I forgot….THANKS Ponytail…you’re absolutely right!
    Akemi gets 14 days of BIRTHDAY.

    Joe, DUDE….are ya listening…2 weeks of Birthday. Required.

    Reply

  23. I loved The Prodigal. I enjoy shows that are fast-paced and full of action.

    PUPPIES! That is a gift to us. Love puppy pictures. How friggin’ adorable.

    I really don’t know how Akemi stays so thin eating so much. Or maybe she just eats a few bites? I’d love to sample some flavored marshmallows outside the ones they sell in the grocery store here. You can keep the sushi.

    Reply

  30. Happy Belated Birthday Akemi! (You’ll explain “belated”, right Joe?)

    I would’ve gone with the gelato, too!

    The Prodigal: Absolutely stellar episode! As much as it annoys me that we never get to see an arch-enemy’s dead body in most shows(mainly because writers LOVE to bring them back in a “surprise” twist later on), I wanted to see Michael return at some point. Such a great enemy. So well acted. It kind of makes me sad to read you say that he did, in fact, die. 🙁

    Of course, I would’ve liked to have seen the series return for another year or more, but Michael’s return would’ve been awesome!

    -Mike A.

    Reply

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