For Erica's chill birthday party last night the centerpiece, both figuratively and literally, was a 3-pound ball of Edam from Mississippi State University. The cheese was a gift from Melissa and Dr. Grady Dixon a few months ago and we've been waiting for a special occasion to dig into it.

As the evening wore on talk turned, as it often does, to tattoos and going and getting some. Kate, Erica, Noah, and I headed over to the Tattoo Factory just after midnight. Kate got a design she's been wanting to get before she leaves Chicago (sniff). We ran into Josh, Kevin, and Brian and Jill (of Cupid Players) who came to watch Brian get a tattoo -- Chicago is totally a small town.