...to say nothing of misty days and Tuesdays? Ok, that's not actually true. Sure, my first thought was...ugh, morning...and gloomy. But as I was driving into work, the misty gray sky and slight drizzle begin to have a certain appeal. Of course, I would have preferred that appeal on a day slightly cooler and across the Pond...there's just something about the mist and smell of a peat moss fire that is uber-comforting...

As much as I would have loved to get a picture of this misty morning, I thought it best not to snap while driving with my new phone and droopy eyelids. Instead, here's a picture from my trip across the Pond. You see why I might like it better than a misty metro-Detroit morning....

They say it's my birthday. And so far, I am rather unimpressed. Well, sure, it is only mid-morning, but let's just say I am remaining a skeptic. Far gone are the days of being excited for the impending party, the pile of presents, and the pizza and cake. It's just that everything in life gets more complicated when you're older...even birthdays.

The age old question still gets asked: "What do you want for your birthday?" The trouble is, at this point in my life, if I really tell you, you'll just get offended. What do I want? I'd like a day to myself, where I can just relax, sit in silence if I want, rock out to music if I want, get pampered if I want, choose to hang out with whomever I choose if I want, without the drama of explaining why I chose who I chose...a day where the demands of life are just erased. I'd like a day where I do not need to perform, do not need to be nice when I want to scream, do not need to satiate other people's desires of being useful and 'thoughtful' by attending things I don't even want to go to. I'd like to actually sincerely be asked what I would like instead of being told what I will like because someone else feels a need to be thoughtful and generous and give me something I don't even want because it makes them feel better.

Now, I must interject in my own ranting to say that I do have two very memorable birthdays from my adulthood.* The first was my 20th birthday where my best friends in college threw me a surprise party in my own apartment. I know - rather amusing, right? For my "gift" they cleaned my apartment (really they were just getting it ready, unbeknownst to me), and one of them took me to dinner while the other "already had plans." She sure did! Very low key, but so very thoughtful... The other was a few years ago...possibly my 1st anniversary of my 30th birthday. My best friends arranged for us to stay in a jacuzzi suite at a hotel, had a masseuse come in, and arranged for our fourth member to show up to take us to dinner and a movie. Again, totally low-key, but the most fun I've had at a birthday in many years - I even got a handmade, storybook birthday card from Mr. BirthdaySkeptic himself!

Now, I'm sure in the years to come, things will change. I'll appreciate the quiet times with my own family, new ways of celebrating and giving...but for now, this year, I remain unimpressed. Perhaps it's just the stress of the many things going on in my life right now. The wedding is two weeks away, we've just been told they are cutting our full staff by 77 and everyone must re-apply for jobs, my mom is staying with me until the week before the wedding... Perhaps it is just all of those things together that make me want to run and hide. That, however, is not my fate for today. For today, it is just another day for me, though to everyone else it may seem something special to say it is my birthday...

So this year, dear BirthdaySkeptic, I agree with your earthly revolutionary theories. There - there is YOUR belated birthday present...or early Christmas present - you pick! :)

*I should mention it is really 2 and a half memorable birthdays. For my 25th, my friends made a valiant effort to work with my mom from afar to plan a fun surprise party. Unfortunately, my mom decided to hire a limo w/o asking/telling me (I get carsick) and they lied to me about where we were eating. Never mess with this girl when it comes to food! All in all, not quite a great birthday, but I very much appreciated the effort by my friends...

For ten years, I have driven into the back lot of the parish where my office now sits, and every spring thought - I have got to get a picture of those sheep! Yes, there is a sheep farm right next to the church in the middle of the city. Of course, this didn't always used to be city - the university across the way used to be a farm after all... So finally, after a decade (yikes - I've lived here a full decade!), I have captured a version of the photo I have always wanted. It's not quite the way my mind's camera captured it, but it will certainly do for now! BAAAAAAA!!!!