in early october, i received this email from will:
Leitch Birthday Bash 2002: A Vaguely Pathetic But Mostly Frightening Scream for Attention

Greetings, fellow humans --

Every year, I host a birthday bash for myself. Sometimes they are themed -- "Everybody Douse Themselves in Iodine!," for example, a big hit in '98 -- and sometimes they are simply random smatterings of people whose paths otherwise would not be likely to cross.

Year 28 of Will Leitch's Existence is about to begin, and I ask you to join me in lamenting that sorry fact. And no, there's no theme. All you have to do is bring yourself, a bottle of Dewar's, two skinless (but live) chickens, a signed copy of Garth Brooks' Chris Gaines album, a New York/New Jersey Hitmen jersey, an empty container of Arby's Curly-Q's and a gallon of rubbing alcohol. And hold the mayo. Please.

And here, friends, are the details and vital instructions:

Where: Totem (505 E 12th St., on Avenue A; take whatever subway you can to the L, then get off at First Avenue); New York City (take a left in Storrs, Conn., then go south for a while. Look for the large buildings all bunched together.When you see those,you're getting close. You will need to find some sort of vessel to transport you over the water that surrounds the "Manhattan Island" portion of the city. My suggestion is a tunnel, or perhaps a bridge.)

When: Saturday, October 12 (simply keep breathing from today until the end of the next two work weeks, then through Friday, extending into Saturday. If you happen to own a 1985 DeLorean with a flux capacitor, you can expedite this process.) 8:30 p.m. (Eastern time. If you have happen to be in another time zone, please adjust your watch or other timekeeping paraphernalia accordingly).

Bring whomever you'd wish. Except for maybe popular "Fraiser" star David Hyde Pierce. That bastard always hogs the bathroom. Same goes for esteemed novelist Mary Higgins Clark. They're not welcome here.

If there are any questions, I encourage anyone and everyone to give me a call. I do hope to see you all there. I apologize in advance for the smell.

Best,

Will Leitch
will and i pose for an early evening photograph.
will greets friends throughout the night and receives a softball glove as a birthday gift.
i peer into dan's ear, trying to mirror this image from a recent trip to boston.
shawn
as more people arrive (including aj daulerio & ailleen gallagher), more drinks are consumed.
this guy with the mustache (and from the other party going on at totem) mugs for a photo and requests two 8x10 glossies of the image.
dan and shawn agree the gentleman seated at right looks like the character michael bolton in office space.
you know the party is moments away from getting out of hand when three people conspire to take silly photos of pints of beer and glasses wearing bartenders.
i pose with eric gillin (the man behind the scenes) for a late night photo. i also remember to take my copy of the mixed cd will made specifically for the party.
dan explains how upset he was when he forgot to throw a 'ten thousand days of dan' party. he reminds will and friends that they're not too late.
will's 2001 housewarming party
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