Date Night at Cinnebarre

Last night Matt and I went out for “date night”. This is noteworthy for a couple reasons. Primarily, because this time last year (or was it two years ago?) we scoffed at the idea of ever labeling an evening as such. We were footloose, fancy free and newly dating. Any day or evening I could spend with him, whatever the plan, was a date in my eyes.

Fast forward to now. Though I still love  every moment we spend together, real life has set in. We run a lot of errands together, eat a lot of home cooked meals, veg out watching reruns, and I wear a lot of sweats. Actually, anytime I’m with Matt and not in sweats, is a big win.

 

Perfect example, this is an instagram pic from Monday. I for one, love my new yoga pants.
Matt saw them and told me I looked like Spider Woman 

But I digress, not the original point of the post. Matt had suggested we go out and do something in the evening. Despite the fact that I was already exhausted at noon, feeling stretched thin with work and outside projects, I also knew that a night out together is less common these days, I had work commitments the next few evenings, and we would be out of town with family over the weekend. Thus, it became our “date night”.

We opted for the traditional dinner and a movie route. I’ve come to discover that the concept, however, was not designed for working professionals in mind. 

I work until 6. Home by 6:30. Done walking the dog and ready to do something no earlier than 7. Most movies start around then. This completely takes the dinner option out, unless you sneak out of work early (not an option for me), fill up on popcorn and candy, or eat a very late dinner. The next set of movie times is around 10, which means getting home a little too late and being tired the next day. Big problems here.

This was a conundrum when it came to planning our evening. Randomly, I remembered Cinnebarre. A dinner/ movie theatre up north that I had been meaning to try since I'd moved back to Seattle. 

 

It was the perfect solution! It was an almost identical experience to the Alamo Drafthouses in Texas, one of the things I've missed most about living there. They even had the same fried pickles! 

Tuesdays happen to be half price ticket nights (note to self, pick another night next time. Parking and seats were at a premium). The food was pretty good. And let’s face it, you can’t top being in a theatre with a glass of wine in hand. No sir.

We saw Her, which I’ve been curious about. All things considered, I liked it and would recommend it. Story and concept aside, what I enjoyed most was the vision behind this future reality. Technology use was less visual, more auditory. People interacted more with their devices than each other, which is already common now, especially in public amongst strangers.
 

The fashion was subtle but fascinating. High waisted pants for all. Sweats (knit material) cut as slacks. Layering of long sleeve tees with other shirts (a nod to a style popular late 90s, early 2000s). Overall, a more conservative look. And of course, the mustache donned by Joaquin was seen throughout the male characters.

Seeing a futuristic LA which resembled more a cross between New York and Tokyo was another great visual element in the movie enjoyed by yours truly.
 

Our evening outing also reminded me of an idea I had a couple years back but never implemented. With February just around the corner, my Happiness Project focus will shift from self improvement, to my relationship with Matt. Perfect timing, since I always think of February as the love month.
 

I want to create a “date night” jar (there’s that term again!) and fill it with all those suggestions/ recommendations people mentions as well as ideas we come across for unique outings. When we are stumped for something to do, or hoping to remember “that one thing we thought of doing that one time” it will be logged and added to the jar.

Caveat here is that we must do whatever is written on the paper we draw.
 

Ideas to include already are two dining suggestions given to me today: The Blind Pig in Eastlake and dessert at Hello Robin in Cap Hill.

Has anyone been?