Happy Birthday to Me
Today is my birthday, and I don’t usually…
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Oh, you…
Thank you. Thanks so much.
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That’s very kind, thank you…
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It’s no big deal – it’s just a birthday. Everybody has one!
Really, there’s no need for applause!
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Okay…I’ll wait.
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So what I was saying is that I usually don’t remember my birthday, much less do anything special for it. I’ll think about it in July or August, but as the time draws near, I always forget again. I think that’s because I want to deny it’s happening because that means I’m getting older and that means there’s less time left to do great things and that means I’m, like, so failing at this life thing and, O.M.G., I’m getting OLD, and “What is THAT? THAT!”, is that a new wrinkle, because I think that’s a new wrinkle, oh my, I’ve got one foot in the grave already, “What a world! What a world!”, and that’s an appropriate quote ’cause I am totally starting to look like the witch in The Wizard of Oz, but not the good witch I am humble.
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I’m sorry, where was I?
Oh yes… So, I went to dinner a few nights ago with my friends Terri and John, a truly lovely couple, and they surprised me with a birthday card (and dinner, aren’t they sweet?!). I was confused at first, but then I thought, “Oh no yeah, it’s my birthday this week.” Here is the card:
Yay for sharks that can’t jump off a card and eat you up!
You know, because I love sharks.
There’s a note on the inside that says they only picked this card because they couldn’t find a zombie card.
You know, because I love zombies.
But that’s what friends are for, right? They are here to tease us about our quirks and all of the foolish things we do. They are here to help us celebrate the fact that, though we may not be teenagers anymore (and really, thank God for that!), it’s still pretty awesome not being dead yet.
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Friendship and family are such a blessing, and I’m so blessed to have spent this last year with you. I’m looking forward to what the next year brings, with my old friends and new.
Thank you so much, my blog friends and family! Thank you for sticking with me as I navigate my way through the changing landscape that is my life. You have supported me and sometimes coddled me, you’ve offered encouragement and guidance, laughter and insight. You continue to shore me up.
I may not cherish getting older, but I cherish all of what it brings me.
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Well, maybe not those wrinkles.
♦
steadily skipping stones 
Happy birthday, awesome woman! I like to celebrate my birthday the entire month, and I highly recommend you do the same. I was shocked a few months ago when I was complaining about getting old and someone shot back, “Well, it’s still better than the alternative.” I do plan on living forever, but in case the world blows up around me, I’ll take being old to being dead any time! Have a super, fantastic, fun birthday!!!!
It’s definitely better than the alternative!! I’ve heard that before, but I don’t think about it much unless I have to, haha. I know you plan to live forever, and I’m real anxious to see how that works out for you. I don’t have quite the same hopes for this body of mine, but I’ll hang with ya as long as I’m able!
Thanks for the birthday wishes, equally awesome lady, or perhaps “even more awesomer lady”. I’m so glad we’re friends!! You and Melissa are on my Thankful list from last week for being great and wonderful blog friends who make me think about my life and want to be a better person. 🙂
Have a most wonderful happy birthday!! Your post was ever so funny, I have to say!
And though I cannot write with word of experience, being only 17 and all 😛 but if I were you I would think of it like this: you are one year much wiser than you were last year, you can look back on a year spent and thank God for His blessings, you can look forward to another year to thank God fore His love and awesomeness, and you can officially say you are one year prettier than you were last year (beauty comes with age, as we ALL know) 😉
You’ve hit it all on the nail!! Look back with thanks and look forward with thanks! And I’m definitely glad to hear that beauty comes with age, cause I never got that memo, haha.
I’m so glad we made friends this year, you’re such a doll and I like you a lot!! I’m just so excited for your new adventures going away to school and I look forward to hearing more about that on your blog! I hope the chickens don’t miss you too much 😉
I like you too, you’re absolutely lovely!
And about that ‘auld age thing? In Proverbs 16:31 it says “Gray hair is a crown of splendor; it is attained by a righteous life.” (not indicating in the slightest that you would even have a hint of grey hair…because I had no idea…) but I do know that in the Bible aging and wisdom go hand in hand – and being wise is a very good thing!
Oh, dear…I dye my hair.
🙂
You’re nice! I would like to think that my wisdom is increasing with age, but I can’t be too certain, haha. I don’t make as many of the same mistakes anymore, which is a good thing. I guess one could call that wisdom. Mostly, I feel like a kid still. But that’s okay! Hopefully, I’ll have many more years to keep growing up. God willing, right?
Happy, happy birthday!
Thanks, KJ! And thanks for the tweet! I’m glad to have you as one of my new blog friends 🙂 I haven’t known you very long, but I can say you keep my mind on it’s toes (so to speak), and you always give me something to think about. I look forward to the next year getting to know you better!
May you have a shark and zombie filled day!! or month…month is good. Yay for birthdays, I’m so glad to have “met” you!
Haha!! That was just a joke because I’m totally scared of sharks and zombies. And yet, I have a kind of zombie fascination. Terri, and especially her husband John, like to tease me about it. But that’s okay!!
I’ll still take your wonderful birthday wishes and I promise to use them only for good. I’m so glad to have “met” you, too! You’re a wonderful person and great blog friend to have! (Actually, you’re on my Thankfuls from last week.)
Happy Birthday, somewhat belated. 🙂
Thanks!! It doesn’t matter when they come! I’m working on a post about commenting on posts, and I keep thinking of you. You often have just tons of comments, and you always answer every single one. Which is totally awesome. Also, I am behind in my yearstricken reading. I see that dog sitting in my inbox, but I haven’t yet scratched him behind the ears.
Happy b’day, belatedly. I spent a good chunk of yesterday getting ready for a colonoscopy, and today was the procedure. As I come out of my sleep-induced coma, I can say I hope you are nowhere near this age. 😉
May you have a happy, healthy and prolific year!
Well, I haven’t traveled down that road yet, which is fine by me!! Thanks for the birthday wishes! I’m glad you have become one of my new friends this year, cause you are kinda awesome. I’m glad your computer at least arrived. But I have to say that there is a kind of magic that happens when you write with pen and paper! I can’t hand write as fast as I type, so I don’t do it often, but when I do… I just love the way the blue ink flows out of my pen and onto that crisp white page. I love the tiny scratching sound as the ball passes over the paper. I love to see my own handwriting…as if the words in my heart are flowing out of me. It’s almost like they magically appeared there. I don’t know exactly why that would be, and why that same connection to my words can’t be found (by me) through the keyboard.
Agreed. This process has reconnected me to my writer’s roots!
Michelle! Happy birthday a day late! I’m so glad you came by my blog via Nina b/c now I found your blog and I think you are waaaay funny. Funny is high on my list of friend attributes and it looks like we are meant to be.
I hope you had shark/zombie free birthday and I look forward to celebrating with you next year on time. 🙂
Hallie! Thank you for stopping by and leaving me a birthday note! That’s so nice 🙂
Just so’s you know, I am rarely funny. I love to make people laugh, and I can do it okay in person, but I’m not a naturally funny person when I write. I get in these moods when it comes out easily in the writing, but then it goes away. Hmm…I wonder what that’s all about?
I did have a shark free birthday, thank you, but I’m reading a book right now with ZOMBIES in it! But I’m not really scared of zombies in books, cause I make pretty unscary zombie pictures in my mind. I’ll be reviewing the book next month, so wish me luck on that! I have never reviewed a book here before, so I’m going to be checking out your site some more. It looks like book reviews are old hat to you!
Happy Birthday! Wishing you a year of joyful days and memories!
Thank you, Victoria!! That is so nice of you!
Damned amateurs. I have half a mind to come down there and show you how to really be old. Half a mind, really be old, get it? Ohh what a gagster!
I’m not going pro until I absolutely have to. And by that time, I’m thinking I’ll go straight from immaturity to senility!
And I did get it! I’m glad we met through that Mr. Byronic fellow. I’ve enjoyed you and your blog 🙂 Also, I love all your gagsterness! The first comment you made to me involved smelling my bs from across town. I’ll never forget that! Way to call a girl out 😉 But I love it!
Don’t know how I missed this auspicious day! Hope it was happy and that you have a great new year.
Well, I don’t know about auspicious, but you are the vocabulary expert here, not me. So I guess I’ll have to take your word for it 😉
Thanks for the birthday wishes, Patricia! You have always had kind words for me, and your support has been welcomed and cherished! I’m so glad we have gotten to know each other, and I look forward to the next year of hanging out with you!
Back atch ya!
Happy Belated Birthday! Wishing you many more wonderful years of happiness, good health and awesome zombie movies!
Haha!! You didn’t have to wish zombie movies on me! But I’ll take what I can get 🙂
Happysherlock! So glad to have met you out here in the blogosphere! I have wanted to try your recipes and wanted to travel to all the places you go and wanted to take the awesome pictures you take… and so far, I haven’t done any of those things. Oh, well. Here’s to another year of sharing each other’s adventures. I’ll let you know if I have any 😉
Happy birthday Michelle 🙂
Did you know, Michelle became one of my favourite names from the TV series Full House. Because the character named Michelle was absolutely adorable!
Oh my gosh! Michelle is totally my favorite name! And I am absolutely adorable, too! What are the odds of that?
🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂
Give me a minute to stop laughing. Oh, dear. Yeah, I do like my name, but I do not relate to that adorable thing. I’ve got dimples, but that’s about it. Letter to my future self: moisturize and use your sunscreen!
Thanks for the happy birthday wish! I love to see your comments on here, you always have something good to add. I’m glad you’re writing to your future self. I think it’s a great thing to live your life with your eyes open for the lessons. It’s pretty easy to let life slip beneath you, like a treadmill – or maybe an avalanche – without paying attention.
” I love to see your comments on here, you always have something good to add. ” – Haha, thank you so much 😀 (Now I’m grinning like a maniac)
“moisturize and use your sunscreen!” – I know I should, but when it comes to being out in the sun, having a layer of goo on my skin does Not help. Where I live, it can get humid and sweaty as it is. Sunscreen only adds to the feeling of ickiness 😛
I bet I’ll repent it later. But I hope by that time they will have come up with some kinda pill to cure years-of-no-sunscreen-use so I shouldn’t inconvenience myself right now 😉
I never used sunscreen as a little kid – was it even invented back then? 🙂 – and I burn in about 15 minutes. I spent my pre-teens looking like a lobster half the time, too. But I’m not a leather face quite yet. So, you should be okay. Still, better safe than sorry!!!
But you’re probably right, there will be a pill for just about anything before it’s all over with.
Happy birthday! Yes, I’m late but being out of town sans computer over the weekend didn’t help. I hope you enjoyed yourself.
Thanks Clay! Well, I worked, but that’s okay. And I accept all birthday wishes with a grateful heart, no matter when they show up!
Happy birthday! Love the card. It’s hard to imagine birthdays without social media isn’t???? I guess we were certainly less wrinkly in those days. 😉
Hi Nina, thanks! Actually, that’s true, because we made our dinner date over twitter! One of those,”we should get together soon,” tweets. I may not know what I’m doing in twitter, but that time it really worked for me!