Yesterday I took the day off almost completely.

I did my duty and went to my Speak Out! Toastmasters in the morning … I even gave a speech (video is forthcoming).

Then I came home and vegged. It was very hot, and being on the top floor, my apartment got the brunt of the heat. It’s an old 1920s building, so no AC either. And most of the time, I don’t need it. But this weekend … ug!

Anyway, about 2 pm, my boyfriend calls and invites me to join him for drinks at Clancy’s, an Irish pub on Broadway and Alamitos in Long Beach — walking distance from my home. I’ve walked by there many times since I moved to Long Beach and have wanted to check it out. Here was my opportunity.

The place was cooled by numerous ceiling fans, so that was nice.

And then I asked the question I always ask at pubs. “Do you serve hard cider?”

You see, when I was an exchange student in England after high school, I acquired a taste for sweet cider. In the UK, my favorite brand was Old English (usually served draft), with Woodpecker (served from a bottle) coming in a close second.

I was in luck! Not only did they serve hard cider … but it was draft and lightly sweet. I asked for a taste and was very pleasantly surprised. It was the best hard cider I’ve had since being back in the States. Here, most ciders are dry and taste almost like beer to me.

This cider was sweet, but not too sweet, and had a crisp, apple flavor. Divine! In fact, it reminded me a lot of Old English. I had two pints!

Then we went out to my favorite restaurant, one I’ve been trying to get him to go to for months … Souplantation.

OK, don’t laugh, but I discovered Sweet Tomatoes (what Souplantation is called in most of the states I’ve lived in) while I was married and I love it. It is salad Nirvana.

All you can eat salad! And there is a huge selection of prepared salads and salad fixin’s. It was a flavorgasm.

And then, I went to the other food bar there, the one with soups and pasta and muffins and soft-serve ice cream. I’m not normally a soup person, but they had an excellent selection. I tried the Lemon Chicken with Orzo … you could taste the fresh lemon … the Cheesy Corn Chowder … a strong flavor of bacon … and even the clam chowder, which was much better than I thought it would be for a non-seasfood restaurant.

And I topped the evening off with some chocolate lava cake.

I came home deliciously satisfied. Now that’s a celebration!

How did you celebrate you yesterday? Did you end your 31 days of celebration with a bang, a real celebration? Please post your celebrations, insights and wisdom in a comment below. And stay tuned for a recap of my 31 Days of Celebration experience tomorrow.