Birthday and such

I'm officially 26 years old.

Although the excitement of birthdays seems to evaporate as a person ages, they've always been kind of a big deal to me. I like the idea of celebrating the anniversary of one's birth — of a day being declared "special" because of it. If nothing else, birthdays serve as congratulations for avoiding death for yet another 365 days. That in itself is a great feat.

This year felt different, though I haven't quite figured out why. Maybe because I was distracted by starting a new job. Maybe because the boys are here. Or maybe, just maybe, it's because turning 26 hurled me over the threshold and I've started the steady decline to 30. Whatever the reason, it just didn't feel like my birthday.

That isn't to say I had a bad one. I had a really nice birthday. My first day on the job was enjoyable, and it sure was nice pulling in the drive just 15 minutes after leaving work. Steve and the boys took me to dinner, and when we got home, K1 and N blew up balloons and helped Steve make my birthday cake (strawberry with vanilla icing, a Barbie decoration and a bunch of those pink sugar flowers. I love pink!). Now, this was the first in a long time that anyone actually put candles on my birthday cake, and I was more than a bit taken aback when Steve carried this flaming confection out of the kitchen. I squelched that fire in one gust, thank you very much. Had to. The heat from the flames was melting the icing. Thanks to those of you who called, sent cards or text messages. They all made me grin.

These last few days have been weird; my life feels foreign in many ways. Today was my second in the new job, and in a word, it was boring. My boss was out all day, and so I spent most of my time with the man whose accounts I'm taking over. He's been with the company for 41 years. I couldn't believe it when I heard it, either. Forty-one years, not only with one company, but with this company in particular. It's amazing. He must be some sort of saint to have held on that long. He's a really nice old guy, very good at what he does. Trouble is, he can't teach worth crap. He's telling me things that really have no relevance to what I'll be doing, and he goes so darn fast I end up just zoning out. (Yeah, I know; I really should pay more attention. It's hard.) He's also a terrible driver. I went with him on a sales call today, and I seriously feared for my life on at least two occasions. I have to go with him again tomorrow, and I'm asking everyone to send up prayers and good thoughts, because we'll be traveling in the highest traffic area in the city and one of the most trafficked areas in the entire state.

K1 and N seem to be having a pretty good time with us. Having them here has certainly been an adjustment. It used to be so quiet and calm ... and clean. My house is now none of those things. For the most part, everything's been good. We hit a few snags here and there, but we're all working on it. I still maintain that K1 is just about the most perfect kid I've ever met. N is also a good kid; he just needs some polishing from some good role models. We're working really hard on that. He's gotten worlds better in just a few days, which is really encouraging to see. You can tell he's trying really hard, too, which at the same time makes me happy and breaks my heart.

It appears that it's now time for bed. Love, peace and chicken grease.