So I turned twenty-seven yesterday and the world did not end. Little children did not point and whisper. Teenagers did not roll their eyes back into their head. But everyone - EVERYONE, asked me that one single question:
"Do you feel old?"
Or in my kind brother's words, "Happy birthday, old lady!"
Gee, thanks!
No one asked me that when I turned twenty-six. Or twenty-five. Trust me, twenty-five was a hard birthday. I was no longer in my early-twenties, instead I was now a mid-twenties girl. I had moved in with my boyfriend, I had my second "real world" job. I couldn't go out and party until all hours every night - mostly because my body couldn't handle it but partly because I didn't want to be the "old chick" at the party.
But twenty-seven? Eh, twenty-seven was fairly easy for me. I don't feel old but I guess now I'm in my "late-twenties" and on that downward slope to thirty. I still look around at the house we bought and the dog we adopted and the career I've built and wonder what the hell I'm doing pretending I can handle all of this. And I don't even have any children! Can you imagine?
But there are times that the years seem to have caught up to me. I've caught myself wondering about kids these days and how they can do what they do, listen to what they listen to. I just had a conversation yesterday with my little sister about heartbreak and boyfriends. I've been out of college for five years. If we have a ten-year high school reunion it'll be next year. Friends that I remember staying out all night with and eating cold pizza in our dorms after a night of partying are married and have babies.
This is not a bad thing, this growing up. It's just a different thing.
With growing up, though, comes less of a birthday celebration. In the years before this, I would celebrate the entire month if I could get away with it. I was one of those annoying people with incessant reminders that went, "Guess what? My birthday is in 23 days!". This year, not so much.
My (step)dad turned forty-one on April 15th, so last weekend, we decided to have a joint barbeque to celebrate. Steve and I went over and hung out while they prepared bratwursts and burgers and hot dogs. We had cake (which is definitely one of my favorite parts) and exchanged presents. Thank god my dad is a fellow geek because all I had to do was hop on over to Think Geek and get him some kitsch from there. My parents got me gardening supplies since I've mentioned that I was actually out many weekends in a row, weeding my front garden and was uber-proud of the fact that I actually got grass to grow in my backyard.
But yesterday, we played it low key, and that's exactly what I wanted. Birthday wishes started early, before I even rolled out of bed and continued throughout the day. My coworkers bought me lunch and sang. And I came home to find my loving, wonderful, amazing boyfriend elbow deep in yellow cake batter, whipping up his first ever homemade cake for me. He then tossed a pair New York strips he'd had marinating for hours (in yummy Jack Daniel's BBQ marinade) on the grill and put some baked potatoes in the microwave. Before I knew it, the house smelled amazing and my tummy was full and content.
I got tons of cards - the ones from my parents always make me cry - and Steve even broke from character and got me a mushy card, which made my day because he always leans towards the funny ones. He also got me the Canon 50mm f/2.5 Compact Macro lens that I desperately wanted. And he bought Grand Theft Auto IV as well, which I didn't expect but was looking forward to getting. Now I just have to wait until Tuesday to pick it up.
On Saturday, we're going to spend the day in Myrtle Beach with some friends. I'm not sure exactly what we're doing yet but it'll just be a chance to get away and have some fun. I told Steve that was my "big" birthday celebration. LOL
So overall, it was a very good birthday, despite, you know, the whole getting old thing. That, apparently, is a bigger deal than I thought.