However, the good news is that I've spent all year thinking that I was as old as I am today. Whether this bodes well (this birthday is a breeze -- I've spent the past 11 months already there, in my mind...) or ill (how bad is it when a person doesn't know her own age, for crying out loud?) remains to be seen.
Years ago, when Robert and I were still puppies, in our early twenties, we had a friend at university who was celebrating his 30th birthday. We took "The Old Geezer" out for a birthday dinner and, over dessert, I got smart and asked, "So, what year were you born?"
He told us.
Now, I'm no math genius, but I know how to subtract. It didn't take Robert and me long to figure out that with our friend's birthdate, he could only be... 29.
We told him he'd have to pay for his own meal, for trying to pull one over on us. It struck us as flat-out hilarious that a person could not know how old he was.
Ah -- one should never laugh at another's shortcomings. It will all come back to haunt you in the end.
I've come to believe that the more birthdays you have, the less your actual age means.
This has been a great birthday.
We had friends over Saturday night for a rousing game of Monopoly (the Grand Rapids edition). It was the most fun I've ever had playing the game -- and not just because I won.
Yesterday, we had some friends who are considering taking one of the horses in my pasture off my hands over for a vegetarian / organic / good-for-you sampler meal and engaging conversation. A good time was had by all -- including the horse, who seemed to really connect with them.
This morning, after letting Sera puppy out, I crawled back to bed and slept in until the frivolously indecent hour of 9:00. Robert had gotten me a wonderful gift selection. (He's great. He listens when I say things like, "if you're wondering what to get me for my birthday..." Then he acts on what he hears.) It's a gorgeous Michigan end-of-summer day. And I'm caught up on work, so I didn't feel at all guilty for wasting time just surfing around online for a while this afternoon.
So: happy birthday to me. I couldn't have asked for a better one.
