Girls Night and the "New" Math

Every month, the girls head out to a different restaurant in Toronto. Over the years, we've visited some great eateries and some wicked dives, eaten some epic meals, drunk some lovely wines, and consumed more calories that I personally would care to think about.

Girls Night is a Dionysian tour de force, full of excesses in conversation, food, drink and honesty. It can be the ultimate "truth or dare" game, but without the dare. It is FUN, sometimes wild and debauched, often raucous, occasionally serious with a soupcon of friction. It is an opportunity for each of us to be who we are, and to be accepted as the marvelous and flawed people we are. Over dinner, the advice flows like the wine, but rarely with the lasting impact of the hangover! There can be moments of disconnect, drama, misunderstanding and hurt feelings. These are always eclipsed by the joy, laughter, outrageous fun, hilarity, and incredible closeness. Girls Night is a celebration of who we are as individuals and as a community, and it is a keen reminder of how important friends are, of how important it is to stay connected against a tide of other commitments, personal trials and tribulations, distance, and expectation.

There is that inevitable point when all the shenanigans stop, when our personal quirks and peccadilloes overcome our party-girl demeanours. It's the dreaded point in the evening, usually after someone has suggested "just one more glass of wine" and we have all agreed, when the bill is delivered to the table. Suddenly, we bon vivants are faced with hard evidence of our excesses. We are inevitably shocked. The bill is the moment of reckoning when glasses go on, and the gloves come off. The awesome infographic below (courtesy of http://theoatmeal.com) pretty much sums it up (note, I am the one with the debit card!):