Wednesday, March 14, 2012

Birthdays

I turned 35 today.


I may be a bit young for this mentality, but I tend to ignore my birthdays as much as possible. When Chelsea asked if I was excited for my birthday, I quoted Vanessa Carlton, "Just a day, just an ordinary day." 


My principal reason for not making a big deal out of my birthday is that I am an introvert. I just don't like all the attention. If I am able to, I will usually take the day off of work. This year that wasn't an option, as I have plans for my vacation days.


I know that other people enjoy making a fuss about the person who is having a birthday. I usually try not to advertise my birthday, so I can avoid the fuss. Facebook has prevented this. So I've learned to be gracious and thank people for their well-wishes.


At the English Village, we have the students as questions of the teachers they've not had before. A popular question is "how old are you?" I've told my students this week that I am 34, but will be 35 this week. It takes them a moment to realize that I'm having a birthday. Then they clap. Last night, one girl told me, "Have a happy birthday tomorrow." It was very kind and thoughtful of her to remember.


I still don't think my birthday is a big deal, but I appreciate the thoughts of others.





2 comments:

RiaTheOne said...

There is a reason my birthday is hidden on FB.

Anonymous said...

On my oldest son's first birthday about 15 of my friends from the newspaper for which I worked at the time in New York City attended a party at the apartment. They all brought him scotch.

Pushing seven decades, I don't worry about 'em much any longer, save as time to go out to dinner.

But for you, well, 35 is just a couple of years from 37 which was Casey Stengel's number. What better?