Birthday Recap

Khubla looks at my chocolate wine.
It was perfectly paired with a
Krispy Kreme donut for my nightcap.

I should be doing a post about a great visit some friends from Nashville made to me and a friend from Laguna Beach, but instead I'd decided to leave that post for another time (it's late. it can't hurt to be later, right?) and do a birthday recap.

Yesterday I turned 34 years old. When I was younger, I thought that was old. And even on some days now, I feel it is. But on the by and by, I don't see myself as old. Mostly because people only think themselves old when they're really, really old. And I think that's appropriate.

I decided a few years back after a particularly rough birthday in the office that working on your birthday is balls. And now unless there's a very very good reason, I don't do it. Even if my birthday is on a Tuesday like this year. How often do you get a random Tuesday off with nothing else around it? Rarely. So I enjoyed it and pretended I was independently wealthy and didn't have to work.

First I slept in until I damn well wanted to and then got treated to delicious breakfast of Crossanwiches (yes, plural. It was my birthday, dammit) from my loving husband. Then I leisurely got ready and went for a mani-pedi. The place I went to treats you kind of like you're a car in the pits at the Daytona 500, so I had two people working on my talons. They were so talented that they had the massages timed so they were rubbing me down at the same time. It was heaven.

Roses from my awesome husband

Then I grabbed Chef and we went shopping. I got to go to Sephora (and thanks Jack for the gift card) which is annual tradition because I like to get my free gift, and some fun goodies. I got a lipstain I had been lusting after and the BEST smelling peony-scented lotion from Philosophy. Then Chef gave me his present. It was my favorite because I wanted it really badly and it's AWESOME, but I'm not telling what it is because too many people could read too much into it. Let's just say it is an technology gadget and leave it at that.

Then we got Krispy Kreme donuts (because donuts can be better than cake some times), and went to eat at my favorite sushi place. In between, I got to check the wonderful birthday wishes everyone left on my Facebook page. (Honestly sometimes I think that's the best part of Facebook).

To cap it off, I watched a screener of Silver Linings Playbook. It was good, but I probably would've liked it better had I seen it before all the hype.

All in all a great balance of my favorite things, my favorite people and relaxation.

And then I went back to work today :). Until next year!

I'm Not a Fan of the end of August

Apologies to all of those with birthdays in late August. And if your wedding is, was or will be scheduled for late August, you'll excuse me for celebrating a little less joyously. For me, late August sucks.

Not just me, but also some of my friends. You see I've lost a lot of good people in my life and it always seems to happen in August. My grandfather passed away 15 years ago earlier this week, my friend's mom passed away around this time, and my own mom passed away 12 years ago today.

The good news is that while I get irritated and a little irritable on this day, I'm not crying in the fetal position like I used to. The older I get the less rare it is, sadly, to have a parent who's passed away too early. And I wonder if the year that I turn 42, it will feel different. That's the year when I will have lived longer without my mom than with her. It seems weird to think about. It also seems weird to think that I've known my stepfather longer than my mom did. By a lot. I've been in the man she married's life longer than she was. And I'm exceptionally thankful for it. There are many gifts she's given me and that is definitely one.

So today I just put my head down and muddled through like every Wednesday. But I knew and I know that this day hurts less this year than last and more than next. But this week, I'm wishing for the weekend for more than just leisure. I'm ready for September!