Jack Black and I have one thing in common…

…a birthdate.

At the Day Job, people bring treats for their birthdays, like we did when I was in grade school. Traditionally, I bake my mother’s cinnamon roll recipe, and even though I had all the ingredients, Thursday night I didn’t really feel like baking. Instead, I decided to stop off at the People’s Bakery in the morning for some doughnuts.

Friday morning, I almost forgot it was my birthday until I checked my e-mail during my morning routine. Brian, the World’s Greatest Husband (WGH), sent me two books from my Amazon.com wish list: Night Watch and Day Watch by Sergei Lukyanenko et al from the World of Watches series. We saw the film Night Watch based on the first part of the same-named novel years ago, and Brian keeps telling me to expand my reading from the books I’ve read ad nauseum, so I put the entire series on my wish list.

My only sincere wish for my birthday each year is for one person to say happy birthday to me without a reminder from me, so I was glad when I received an e-mail from my Best Friend Betsy RN MSN wishing me a happy birthday. Even though Bets looks a lot younger than I do (and neither of us looks like we’re in our mid-forties), she is older than me by six months and two days.

Brian forgot to wish me a happy birthday until I reminded him to stop at the People’s Bakery, but that’s okay: he already sent me gifts (and one more is on the way); plus, as I keep reminding him, every day with him is the best gift ever. The bakery not only was generous with the two-dozen doughnuts, but I also bought some doughnut holes.

In fact, Brian was concerned about how he was going to top last year’s birthday: the Packers played their last pre-season game at Lambeau on my birthday proper. He bought tickets from a colleague, and we had a marvelous time. Plus, I splurged on myself and bought the unaltered theatrical releases of the Original Star Wars Trilogy (in other words, Han shot first).

At the Day Job, I sent the e-mail:
It’s Jack Black’s Birthday… (DOUGHNUTS!)
…which happens to be the same date as mine.
To celebrate turning 28 (for the 19th time; you do the math), I brought in doughnuts and doughnut holes from the People’s Bakery. Goodies can be found on the fifth floor between columns B9 and B10.
Remember: the more you eat, the less I gain!
-Lori
The doughnuts were gone before noon, and I ate the last doughnut hole for dessert for my lunch.

I was mildly disappointed that Google didn’t have a birthday Doodle for me, as they have in the past. Oh, well. No big deal.

After work, I took a nap because I was tired and it was MY birthday, dammit. Though I did tell the WGH to wake me in time for dinner. I debated between the Nitty Gritty, a local birthday bar that I hadn’t been to for my birthday since my mid-twenties, or the Market Street Diner, where I would receive a free birthday cake from Carl’s Cakes. Ultimately, I decided upon the latter because my acid reflux was acting up, and I didn’t want to exacerbate it with bar food.

Even though I wanted to Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon II: The Green Legend on Netflix that night, I decided I just wanted to go to bed early. Yes, I’m getting old. Besides, when I just looked up the hyperlink, it says the movie still has yet to be released.

Saturday evening, as Brian and I watched the debacle that was the Packers preseason game three and at the cake from Carl’s, the WGH lamented that this year’s birthday was no comparison to the grandeur of last year’s. I told him that was fine. I don’t have to have a big to-do every year for my birthday. He can make a fuss when I turn 50 because I want a big red hat party.

Pog ma thoin!
-Lori

“There comes a time when you should stop expecting other people to make a big deal about your birthday. That time is age eleven.” – Dave Barry