December 99
December 98
December 97

_________________
Monday
06 December 99
my 22nd birthday

 

3 09 pm pst   [ twenty-two ]

You say it's your birthday.
It's my birthday too -- yeah!
They say it's your birthday.
We're gonna have a good time.
I'm glad it's your birthday.
Happy birthday to you.

I started off the day with my pile of e-mail and catching up on some internet projects.   Then, for some unknown reason, I looked up other online diarist who share my birthday and I e-mailed all five a Happy Birthday! message.   One of the e-mails didn't go through, and one of the people whote me back and thanked me for making them smile.   Can I count that as my good deed for the day?

I'm 22, and while I did run around the house yesterday annoying Matthew's roommates by randomly announcing how many hours it was until my birthday, I finally understand why some people don't get excited about their b-days.   When you are younger, you are looking forward to something, and there are all of the important dates: 10 (double digits!), 13, 16, 18, 21.   But at 22, you're not looking forward to an age anymore (unless you are awaiting 35 so you can run for president).   I think a lot of people would be pleased as punch to hover at 22 for a decade or so.   I look forward to getting older, especially because I look so stinking young, but I am not looking forward to a specific age.   I'm just excited about putting more wisdom and experience under my belt*.

So I am here alone at my beau's house in Berkeley not knowing what I'm doing or even what state I am going to be in from month to month.   This life of mine is an exciting adventure, and I am looking forward to a whole 'nother year of it.

* "... under my belt" is a common expression, but I wanted to point out that I don't even wear a belt -- ever.   I don't currently own any, though I made a small effort to aquire a few vegan belts while I was in college.   I like the idea of belts as an accessory, but I never make them part of my outfits...

5 50 pm pst   [ gifts ]

This birthday is turning out to be quite delicious.   I have recevied a small flood of birthday wishes and cards today, which have warmed my heart.   Jolene delighted me with an online card which arrived immediately after midnight, and I got lovely birthday wishes from a reader named Clark as well as my mother's boyfriend.   My favorite (if I am allowed to have one) was a gift from a reader who has never contacted me before.   The gift was something I have never received before, but something which was perfect for me: a list.   It was waiting for me when I got out of the shower and it made my giggle.   And now, from the fingers of Foster straight to you:

    Ten Things That Come to Mind About Rachel Rein
    (based, of course, on her diary):
      10. Interesting
      9. Young
      8. Frank
      7. Secure
      6. Thoughtful
      5. Unguarded
      4. Bright
      3. Attractive
      2. Indulged
      1. Enchanting

In addition, I found a very flattering reveiw of my site in Catherine's wonderful weblog*.   Also, on 4 Dec. 1999, a woman named Rachel wrote to me that I had inspired her to start her own online journal.

Now I'm thinking I should have called this entry: [ a girl and her camera ].   Yes, I like to have the camera showing.   Yes I like to take pictures in the mirror instead of pointing the cemera at myself.   Yes, i like to do series of similar images.   Yes, I will try to be more creative and varied as I contnue to flood my site with pictures.   And look for my [still unnamed] special audio-visual section coming soon.

 

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