East meets West.

The wife and I were invited to our neighbor's child's birthday party. The people who dwell next to us are Indian (dot, not feather) and promised good times and great food.

They did not disappoint. They rented an inflatable bouncy castle decorated with Dora the Explorer, a cartoon I'm largely unfamiliar with. The kids were bouncing and shouting with glee as it provided much entertainment.

The wife and I were one of maybe six white people in the home as everyone else hailed from India. They had good food and everyone was very friendly and we had a good time. The ladies were all dressed to the hilt in their saris and the girls had on pretty dresses. Later when they brought out the cake, complete with Dora decor, they passed out noise makers to the children. It was like being at a soccer match with those damn Vuvuzelas. Suddenly the seemingly well behaved wee ones were tearing apart the home blaring sounds at decibels unfit for mortal man. They accompanied the Happy Birthday song, which sounded like gibberish with all that racket.

In a few years I'll have to deal with all that, but this time I'll get to go in the bouncy castle.

It was the first time we actually spent a good amount of time with the neighbors, but we were pleased with the results. We truly have good people in this neighborhood and I'm grateful for that. What was really disappointing, though, is that no one played Benny Lava:

"Cinema in India is like brushing your teeth in the morning. You can't escape it." -Shahrukh Khan