The Surprise Retirement Luau...The Prep

In April of this year, Mr Something announced that he would be retiring after thirty-six years with The Dallas Fire Department. Sounded like a great excuse for a party to me, but knowing him as well as I do, a safe assumption would be that he wouldn't be so keen on the idea.

A generous, caring and thoughtful man - I've often referred to him as "Burnt Toast Guy". You know the type. Everybody is gathered around in the kitchen for breakfast and sure enough, there are a few pieces of burnt toast. He's the guy who says with enthusiasm ... "Mmmmm. I like burnt toast!" as he snaps it up, slathering it with jam. He does this, not because he really likes burnt toast, but because he wants others to have the good stuff. That's just the kind of guy that he is.

And cheap. I would be remiss if I didn't include "cheap".

Once, while my sister was in town, we gave each other Indian-names (long story). He chose his own..."He-Who-Speaks-Like-Bird" (cheep).

While visiting Washington, DC,  he pounced at the opportunity to have his picture taken in front of "The Office of Thrift Supervision".

Although those that know him, tease him about his penny-pinching ways - I know for a fact that he would give away his last dollar - he would just have trouble spending it on himself.

Party planning would have to be under his radar.

Choosing the date and venue for the party was first priority.

Great place for a luau...don't you think?

Then it was time to make some difficult guest list decisions. Mr. Something's closest friends, fellow firefighters, their spouses and our immediate family were given the heads-up to save-the-date.

The rest was fun.

• Invitations were from vistaprint.com

• Stamps were ordered from the US Postal Service online. Hawaiian Shirts. You can get any kind of stamp - who knew?

•  Food: Traditional Hawaiian Barbequed Chicken, Rice and Macaroni salad. Pork Ribs were added (smoked by Mr. Something's talented son, Brian). A green salad and skewered fruit finished off the buffet.

• Pina Colada Machine: The Pina Colada guy said that the machine should dispense 60 Pina Coladas. What he failed to say was...those would be very small drinks (4 oz). Our guests had 12 oz cups. Note to self...order more Pina Colada mix and/or supply smaller cups in the future. We ran out of Pina Coladas soon after the party started but had beer, wine, soft drinks and water as backup...so everything worked out OK.

• Entertainment:  DJ vs. Hula Dancers - DJ vs. Hula Dancers  ...Definitely Hula Dancers. A quick Google search found a nearby Hula Dance troupe. Music responsibility was assigned to Mr. Something's eldest (and equally talented son), Ben

•  Cake:  Maryann out-did herself.

 Stay tuned for the next installment of The Surprise Retirement Luau...The Party.