Okay, so I’ve been a little neglectful of my blog. Sorry about that. Life has been moving pretty fast lately and it hasn’t all been good… but I’m getting by and things seem to be looking up. Knock on wood.
So, my birthday. What can I say? It was low key, almost. I didn’t actually plan anything myself, but I was treated to lunches, dinners and shopping trips. The highlight of my birthday (which isn’t entirely over, acutally) was a surprise birthday party. Cake, pizza, streamers, balloons, banners, homemade party hats (see pictures above), flower leis, funky sunglasses, presents, cards, flowers and, most especially, friends. It was a hell of a surprise-- most especially because they showed up on my door step will all the aforementioned goodies and proceeded to decorate my house while I watched. It was… memorable. It was special. Have I mentioned lately how lucky I am? Pretty darn lucky.
I’m going to try to be better about stopping by here. I blogged every day in March and things just kind of fell apart after that. It’s turning out to be a roller coaster kind of year and I’m not sure where the time is going, but it’s going. There are so many things I want to accomplish before the end of this year-- hell, before the end of summer.
Better get to it.
I haven’t been writing much lately-- here or anywhere else, for that matter. Sometimes life has a way of throwing curve balls at you, two and three at a time, so you’re not sure which way to dodge to avoid getting hit. And sometimes you get hit anyway.
My birthday is in two days and though I’d like to say I will celebrate it with the same joy and abandon I did last year, I suspect I won’t. I’m not where I should be mentally to enjoy it the way I have in previous years, but I’m working on that. I’m tired of worrying and stressing about things beyond my control. I’m tired of feeling sorry for my sad little self when I have much to be grateful for.
This year on my birthday, I will be quietly thankful for the people in my life who have reminded me in so many little ways that I am not alone, I am not unloved, I do have family, even if it’s not the old-fashioned kind. They call, they write, they hug, they listen, they argue, they care, they lecture, they love. If that’s not family, what is? Granted, it’s an odd little family with some pretty wacky characters (which I guess makes it a true southern family, huh?), but it’s mine, all mine.
Sometimes the best gifts are the ones we give ourselves. I have managed to create one hell of a family for myself-- which makes me the luckiest birthday girl in the world.
I’m not quite sure where April went, but somehow May is here and it seems a good time to pop in and let people know I’m alive. There were plenty of April showers (of the emotional variety) for me, which is why the long silence. I am more than ready to face a spring meadow of flowers, if someone would be so kind as to point me in the right direction. Anyone? Anyone? Bueller?
My birthday is Friday. I have spared everyone who knows me the frequent announcements that I made loudly and often last year at this time. I am not feeling the happy birthday vibe right now. It has nothing at all to do with getting older, I just have too many other things on my mind right now. Life is funny like that sometimes.
And on that note, I leave you with this bit of advice: When life hands you lemons, make lemonade. When life hands you limes, make margaritas.
Here’s hoping that by the end of the week I’ll be feeling more like the birthday girl I was last year.
It’s been awhile, huh? I wish I could say I have been doing something terribly exciting, but the truth is I’ve just been living life. However, the good news the fortune teller promised me between April 15th and April 20th has not yet materialized, and here it is one hour into the 20th. I’ll let you know in twenty-three hours if anything wonderful has happened. I actually received some not-so-good news on the 15th, about which I’m not inclined to discuss because I’m still in the midst of dealing with it.
While I wait for the other shoe to drop (which promises to be weeks away, unfortunately), I’ve been engaging in my favorite kinds of therapy-- retail therapy, drinking therapy, eating therapy, baking therapy, physical therapy and-- today-- gardening therapy. Gardening is damn hard work but in a couple of months I’m going to have enough tomatoes, cucumbers and peppers to feed a small island nation. There are worse ways to spend my time than playing in the dirt.
My birthday is fast approaching and so far I have not been inspired to turn it into the national holiday I have in the past. Perhaps this is my year to do it low-key, hmm? We’ll have to wait and see.
I mentioned that I got my palm read last weekend when I was in DC, didn’t I? Interesting experience. A woman sitting on the sidewalk in front of her apartment building (which was on a street of residential and commerical buildings) in a plastic patio chair, wearing some bright house dress sort of thing with open-toed shoes and a fake fur coat that made her look like she was being attacked by a bear. A very shiny, synthetic bear, but a bear nonetheless. Clearly, this woman is a success in her field. Oh my.
Anyway, for the low, low price of only five bucks, she read my palm. Granted, Joe paid the five bucks (after getting not only his palm read but also a turn with the tarot cards), but I was skeptical. Still am. Not that I don’t believe there are people who can foretell the future… I do believe. (Hallelujah) I just have my doubts about women sitting on the sidewalk in bear coats. Y’know?
So, what does my future hold? Well… it was a mixed bag. Here is what she told me:
--I will have a long life.
--I will be the head of a big company. (This is so far from anything I’d ever want to do, I can’t imagine it. Once she said this, I pretty much went into skeptical/sarcastic mode.)
--I like to travel. (Well, duh. I’m a tourist, I’m in DC, clearly I enjoy leaving home.)
--I have doubts and indecisions about the future. (Of course! I’m indecisive about whether to buy my bear coat in black or brown fake fur.)
--I will have one marriage. (I pointed out my wedding ring when she said, “I see one marriage” and said, “Of course you do, here it is.” That did not win me points.)
--I will have two children.
--I will receive some good news between April 15th and 20th.
--My life is filled with good luck. (I will not argue with this one.)
--2004 will be a lucky year for me. (Here’s hoping.)
She said I have too many doubts in my mind, which apparently made it hard for her to read my future. Joe had a more positive response, but I didn’t get to hear his card reading because she shooed me out of the room. Guess I was casting too much bad energy on her work space. Oh well.
Lucky in 2004. That would be nice. If I get good news in the next week, I may just have to go back to DC and apologize for being so skeptical. And ask where she bought her bear coat.
Life. Love. Writing. Friendship.
Sex. Books. Movies. Travel. Politics. Feminism. Academia. Insomnia. Rants. Raves. Chocolate. Lots of chocolate. Some names have been changed, some stories have been embellished. Thanks for stopping by and beware of the dog. Read more...
