Therapy

Main Entry: ther·a·py
Pronunciation: \ˈther-ə-pē\
Function: noun
Inflected Form(s): plural ther·a·pies
Etymology: New Latin therapia, from Greek therapeia, from therapeuein
Date: circa 1846
: therapeutic treatment especially of bodily, mental, or behavioral disorder
The above definition according to my highly esteemed Webster (as in dictionary)

So people have only been getting therapy since 1846...well I don't feel so bad now for it taking me so long to get to ours. If you're not familiar with Therapy (capital "T") it has been a trendy martini bar open in Charlotte since 1993; yet somehow I just never quite got there until now. I was worried it would be overrated, too expensive, full of obnoxious sex and the city wannabes. And I was partially right - but fortunately the crowd was older than I anticipated, and much more fashionable than I gave them credit for. The service (thanks Rebecca!) was fantastic - just right level of personal touch, never hovering or absent for too long. For ambiance when you want a nice, busy place to have a drink but you don't have to yell to hear each other - Wednesday night at Therapy is definitely the place.

So Mandy and I determine that we will go straight away after work to have a proper martini in our first bar that really claims the Martini made it famous. We choose public transit - I really like that free trolley (wish it came to my house) and got a nice little walk in as well. We spent the time at the trolley stop talking about Twilight. Evidently I am the only woman on the planet who has no idea it is coming out on Thursday night and is threatening to be the biggest blockbuster since The Dark Batman (I know gentlemen, I just lost cool points on that one but I don't know what it's called and I have no intentions of seeing it). So Mandy proceeds to tell me it's about vampires with consciences and very hot sex lives (or is that what you'd call it since they are technically dead?). I admit, I am intrigued. But more so because it was a book first. Of course, I rarely buy books and at this rate, trying to get it at the library would be like getting the next Harry Potter book when it comes out. So I give up. Maybe in a few years I'll sit down at home with a martini and read it.

But back to Therapy. The menu is completely overwhelming - half price martinis on Wednesday nights and there are at least 30 to choose from. We debate for a few minutes on whether or not we will get something fun and fancy or stick to our puritan roots and go for the Gin and the Vodka. Mandy's hopes are dashed when she learns that the classic martini really is made with Gin (I knew this all along, but as a good friend will not rub it in...) so she gets some sort of "Demons Within"martini - Pepper Vodka and more hot stuff - sort of like a bloody Mary all grown up in a stemmed glass. I liked the look but didn't taste (Mandy has a cold and I don't want it). I finally decide on the "Don't Stop" martini - gin, vermouth, lemon twist (admittedly I skipped the fruit) - and wow, it was good and it didn't stop...

Once our morals were loosened up a little, her Demons unleashed and me talking incessantly about inappropriate things, we really started to take in the concept of Therapy. Mandy and I have known each other for, let's just say over 10 years!, and I pretty much thought we had told each other everything about the other person. Wrong. Did you know Mandy likes a ... I wouldn't really write that here. Plus there's nothing to stop her from blogging away about all the secrets I divulged either!

Regardless, it was a scintillating 3 hours of conversation, commiserating, and meeting a new friend in Rebecca the fantastic server that Mandy hopes will be our new "Silver Friend." And suddenly I realize I cannot drive my car (legally or rationally) and I have to call my, gasp, husband to come pick me up. Graciously he gets out of bed (it's HOW late?) and drives downtown to collect me...ashamed and apologizing profusely.

Thus ends Martini Night 2 at Therapy. We are going to take a short break and dry out and reconvene after Thanksgiving. Despite the fact I tried to avoid it, I now have a horrible cold, which takes all the fun out of martinis...

No. 001

Birthdays - I am still at an age where I kind of like them, well my own at least. And Mandy's, which is a great reason to go out and have a martini! So we do. We decide to make a big deal out of this so instead of launching ourselves into the first bar we find on the way out of the office, we actually plan something. Thursday night, 8:00, we'll meet at her place. Of course we will. It's downtown and completely more accessible to anything we want to do than my little haven in the university area. So I get home from work, after an hour in traffic (what the f@%# is wrong with Charlotte drivers?) and get all dolled up. Jeans, sequins, and shoebooties (eye roll), lipstick, hair - OK now I can get back in the car.



Once downtown we drive to the last free parking deck in the city that's too big for it's britches. Seriously, it's Thursday, in CHARLOTTE - are we going to run out of parking if we don't charge for it?



Meandering down sidewalks, passing a street musician and some people just leaving their offices (I am not the only one who works way too late) we very shortly arrive at Blue. I forgot for a moment that I have actually been here before. The bar is full. Please do not relegate us to the nonsmoking section. It is time for me to come clean. I am a part time smoker - there. I said it. So may no one who wants to lecture me about my health read this...Fortunately we are saved by a whole additional section of the bar which is completely empty. So we saunter over to the rhythm of the jazz band and take our stools.



And Katie is the bartender (high school - I know right, this could never happen in Paris) and the manager Brett, is an old friend of my sister! We explain our new mission (finding the perfect martini remember?) and Katie happily obliges. So far so good. Until they cannot tell which martini is the Gin and which is the Vodka. Pretty funny really. So a few cool points lost for skill, but they were redeemed by humanity later.



Sadly enough, despite the great outfits and the great cause for celebration (Mandy's birthday) we are too tired to really party. I barely finish my martini in an hour and a half and it's warm...



But the cocktails were gratis thanks to friends from the past and birthdays. Official martini experience No. 001 - gets a solid 5. And no, there aren't actually any criteria for the ratings, it's all based on my mood.

Accidental Martini

But wait - I forgot to mention I had a the first martini without Mandy (it was an accident - oops) on Wednesday night the week before. A couple of the guys from work wanted to get drinks, and at the time the proposition arrived (around noon, or was it 10:30?) I was ready to start drinking immediately. But that would be frowned upon in my company culture (not yours?) and there was a lot of work on my daily action plan list, so I harnessed all the self discipline I could muster and made it through all the way to 6:45. OK so now I am late for the post-slaving rehashing of the day, and wondering if they'll even still be there. Where - Hickory Tavern. I know, not the place I would picture as a martini bar, which explains how it was accidental. But I really needed a stiff one (read into this however you like) and that was all I wanted. So a sapphire martini in a short glass (no stem!) and some good conversation. Robert actually left before I arrived, but Tony arrived moments before me. So Joe and T-dog (the master mingler) and I had some good giggles about various and sundry topics, and then it turned to football.

So I had to get another martini (yikes, my one turned into two...how does that always happen). Turns out Joe is a Redskins fan too. Much better than I am - he actually has NFL ticket so he can watch the games I can only fantasize about. But isn't fantasy better most of the time? I digress. So on a scale of 1 to 10 for martinis, Hickory Tavern gets an 8 and my fellow drinkers get a 10!

The commencement

First thought - wow, I haven't had that much sleep since college. Next - my husband, wonderful man, has already packed the car and gone to Trader Joe's. All that remains is for me to eat this fantastic omelette and go to Fall Brawl VI.

But I have this extremely important idea and have to call my stunningly beautiful friend, Mandy and share it. I know - it is 10:30 on a Saturday morning, and I really shouldn't be calling anyone, much less thinking about drinking, but it's just too good.

The Perfect Martini

How many times have we said, "Where do you want to go?" and fallen back on the same old Boardwalk Billy's and Sushi 101 evenings? (I cannot group the Wine Vault in with this because we always have a great time there!) But I really want to know where is the right place to go when I want a perfect, quiet martini, or a loud dancing fantastic martini.

So I call Mandy at 10:30 in the AM and say, "Hey - what do you think about us going on a mission to find the perfect martini in Charlotte?" to which she replies, "That sounds like a great idea." (Well what else is she going to say? It IS a great idea)

So we hang up agreeing that in the next 7 days we will have our first official martini on the hunt.