Recently, there has been a slight flux in the amount of traffic that comes to my site. Interestingly enough, a great deal of it is originating from Michigan. What can I say? I’m a geek and I enjoy looking up statistical details like that. That being said, I’m pretty confident I know the identity of at least one person signing on and reading the random dribble that spills from my brain and out on to the world wide web. I mean, c’mon, who else would be searching for my specific name on Google, from a school district computer, and have an IP address that lists Farmington as the originating city? It was pretty simple.
I figured I’d just say, “Hi.”, and that I won’t call you out. I’m nice like that. 😉  I do like the fact that I’m getting a wider audience, though, even if it is by proxy.
Anyway, today I was thinking about what it means to be 27 years old. It is my first full day being 27, and I’m breaking it in like a new pair of shoes. It’s kind of the same as when there’s a new year. It takes a while to automatically adjust and state that it’s 2009 or what have you.
I started out my birthday the way I have done since I’ve been old enough to hold a telephone: At exactly 6am, without fail, my grandmother calls me and sings happy birthday. It is the cutest, most endearing thing I’ve ever heard, and I honestly look forward to it each year. I know I sound incredibly dorky, but I’m just a big kid and I love my grandma.
You see, when I was a kid, being at grandma and grandpa’s house was magic. Pure magic and unadulterated awesome. And it wasn’t necessarily that there was a lot more to do there, but that I loved them and had an undeniable sense of peace whenever they were around. That, ladies and gentlemen, is what I consider magic. I still have all four of my grandparents, and I’m absolutely dreading the day I lose any of them.
Within an hour of my grandmother’s call, my dad sent me a message saying happy birthday via MSN instant messenger. Of course, he also called me at work. He’s a good old guy, and I’m proud to say that he’s my dad. He’s always proud to say that I’m his son, so it works out. From the way he talks, it sounds like he brags about me when he can. Though, I think he’s still a bit bitter that I make more money than him, but he’ll get over it. Ha! Just kidding, dad. I love ya.
When I finally made it in to work, waiting for me in my cubicle was the mylar forest. Balloons. Many balloons. Admittedly, I like the decorations better this year. Balloons I can deal with. Last year? They had streamers, signs, and put pictures up all over my cubicle. Then they sprinkled glitter and confetti everywhere (and of course, you find it years afterward). Of course, SOME of the little pieces of glitter were shaped like penises, but we won’t discuss THAT.
And along with last years decorations, all of the pictures that they put up? All of them were of 80’s bands: Duran Duran, New Kids, etc. etc.
It was a nightmare. Hilarious. But a nightmare. This year, just balloons. I can deal with balloons.
Along with all of that, Tom, one of the most straight laced gentlemen I’ve ever known in the history of geekery, bought me a bottle of rum for my birthday. It tied in nicely with our discussion about having a conference call with “The Cap’n”, and plus, I mean, hey, free booze. Tom is awesome.
I got three cards here at work: one from Kara, Trina, and the other was from my team (of about 15 people, which they all signed) with a gift card to ThinkGeek (score!). I got calls, e-mails, and messages from Alison, Daniel, Misty, Heather, Nathan, Savvy, Karis, Rob, Molly, Faitha, Jennifer, Mike, and Eric. To say the least, I felt incredibly loved yesterday.
Of course, the rest of my birthday was spent wishing fervently for it to end. I can only handle so many meetings and conference calls at work before my brain feels like it’s being converted in to tapioca pudding. Gah. Who knew that an innocuous job title like, “Systems Analyst” could carry so much BS.
That being said, it was a fantastic day, and I wouldn’t have changed anything about it. I ended up going to the Rock Bottom Brewery with Alison, and had a great time. The music and the food were good, and I’ve always loved the ambience of that place.
Friday is almost here, and I can’t wait for a three day weekend. Of course, it’s going to be completely full with band, work, and things that need to get done around the house. It’s okay, I just wish that I could relax a little bit on a long weekend. It seems I end up being even more busy than usual. Oh well.