My mother always made sure that I had special birthdays growing up. We didn't have much (although I didn't know that at the time) but she always made sure I had a cake and gifts, and when I got older and we had a little more money, I had the requisite roller skating parties and sleepovers, and one magical year I even had a Showbiz Pizza (AKA Chuck E. Cheese) Party!*
This is accurate.
After I became a teenager the parties stopped, but my birthdays were still treated as something important by my parents. My mom always made a special dinner for me, and every year until he passed away, my dad would wake me up singing happy birthday. Granted, I often have had bad luck on my birthdays, which led me to boycott them for a while, but the memories of the good stuff always stuck. I think that's now why I like the idea of "doing something" for birthdays, because I fondly remember so many of my own from being a kid. Not just for me, though. I like to make a little fuss for all the people I love on their birthdays to pass that along. Everyone deserves to feel a little special to celebrate being alive, I think.
Since I didn't want to subject anyone else to possible disasters, I decided that I'd take the day and wander around to do whatever the wind told me to. Really, that meant I got to sleep in and then lie around for a while watching YouTube videos (a habit I really need to break myself of) until I decided to get ready and go out! My mom called me to sing Happy Birthday (she took over when my dad died) which was my cue to get out of bed, and Sara sent me flowers, which were delivered while I was mostly undressed. Sorry you had to see me like that, delivery man! I got in my car and drove to the only place I really planned on going, which is an Asian market on the other side of town. I know that sounds weird, but I love going in there and buying stuff that I'm not 100% sure what it is or how to fix it. That's always kind of an adventure in itself. Of course, I did go there looking specifically for something I'd seen on the internet, but I also managed to find several other things that looked interesting. I didn't buy anything too weird, but now I have an ass-load of instant boba tea, Haw Flakes, and pandan flavoring. (Yeah, still not sure what that last one is, but it's green and I'm going to use it on something.)
Next, I was planning on going to a fancy-ish shopping center and walk around for a while, but the universe decided (and by that mean that I didn't turn at the right exit) that I should go to downtown Huntsville and have lunch there instead. A lot of hipstery places and boutique shops are starting to open up in the the old business district down there, so I also decided to walk around and see what I could see. I went to lunch at a tiny place that I've been trying to get Steve to go to for months, but he never seems interested enough. It's called Domaine South, which is place on the square that sells wine, cheese and sandwiches. I think you're supposed to have a reservation, but since I was alone, I snagged the last seat at the bar and had a nice ham sandwich and an amazing piece of cheesecake. From there I walked across to the Harrison Brother's Hardware store and looked around for a while, and then I walked in and out of some of the places I'd never been before. It was nice and relaxing, really. I ended my excursion by getting hot chocolate from the hipster coffee shop on the corner and then went home and took a nap.
The nap was important. I'm an old lady now. Heehee.
Steve came home from work and he brought me a birthday cake. A real, live, birthday cake! Not once, before being married nor after, has he ever done that. I realize that it probably sounds like I'm being snarky, but I promise I'm not. I thought that was nice and I was surprised! He doesn't usually do things like that, so it was both weird and very sweet. Since we usually don't go out on my birthday (as Valentine's Day is kind of a pain in the ass to try and go out during) we were going to grab some dinner and bring it home, but decided on the spur of the moment to go to a local hibachi place before things got too crazy. I really like the food at hibachi restaurants, but I do NOT like enduring the show portion of things. I know that makes me a stick in the mud, but unless I know everyone sitting at the stove-thing, it's always awkward and you feel the need to talk to strangers and Steve never talks to anyone, and I end up having to interact, and I would just rather enjoy my dinner and enjoy the company of the person I came with. Also, I like to get my food all at once and not have to eat one thing at a time as the cook finishes it. At any rate, we got to eat good food and go home and have cake, and that was a nice way to end the day.
Now, if I might be allowed to be a bit sentimental for a second, I do want to say that the best part of my day wasn't the cheesecake, or the exploring, or even the nap (although that was way up there) but the fact that so many people that I love were a part of it. I got messages, phone calls, and a video that I loved wholeheartedly. I've been reminded - often - over the past few months that you don't get to keep people forever. You have to love them and enjoy them while they are with you, so it wasn't just that they remembered me and reached out (and I know how easy it is to forget about people who aren't near you all of the time) but that they reminded me that they were still there in my life and I love them even more for that.
So until next year, happy birthday to me! :)
*That was my 9th birthday in 1987. I had an accidental mullet, permed, from a bad haircut and I wore a wildly patterned button up shirt that Weird Al Yankovick would have been proud of. Oh, and a pair of sky blue Converse high tops. I don't remember that birthday specifically because it was at Showbiz Pizza, but because I was dressed as Screech from Saved By the Bell. No pictures survive, so don't even ask. Heehee.
I hug you.
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