the non-piercing commemoration of my birthday

If I had found my camera this morning, here's what I would have taken pictures of on my 21st birthday:

*The beautiful flowers and spring leaves I see every year, because I was born on an awesome day. Dan said they're all there just for my birthday.
*My presents, before unwrapping. From Dan, Gilmore Girls, Season 3. From Dan's mom/ family, a beading kit for making ancient civilization-type objects and a sappy but nice card.
*Dan trudging off to his exam
*The empty Palmieri's parking lot. Disappointment! Closed on Mondays!
*Waiting for in front of Gaige for Dan to get out of his exam
*Alkaline Trio guy. Just because he intrigues me, and I people-watched him while I was waiting
*Dan and I finally having our picnick of Subway sandwiches on the lawn. Stupid tuna fish.
*Me dancing on the nice little hills of grass, weaing my cute (as Dan called it) birthday outfit, which was striped and fun, though not pirate-y.
*The lilacs
*The Cumberland farms, and my winning scratchcard, which a random man chipped in $1 for when he hear me say it was my birthday. I won $10!
*Stupid Job Lot t-shirts, such as: a fat alligator golfer, Aaron Carter, the Osbournes, and the ones I bought, "Bus Demolition Derby '89" and "Double Dragon," which was also a television show from when I was a kid. A really lame television show.
*Dan with his strap-on weights, looking like a kid who put his pads on the wrong spots before roller blading
*The formerly dark and long hallway in lincoln mall.
*The quickie squirt gun fight outside the mall bathrooms
*The loverly fountain and my poor coin-flipping technique
*Dan waving a lollipop in front of my face while my ears were being pierced.
*My ears being pierced, Dan's second present to me.
*My ride on the kiddie jeep in the mall. Oh, we were just yards from that Radio Shack. Woe, the bolts.
*Squirt gun fight: the front-yard, Jeffrey-included sequel
*Cake, ice cream, and the opening of my only presents, two bags of Honey Dew Cinnamon Hazelnut coffee.

After all those pictures I would have taken, we watched 24, and then Dan took my car home because his car squirted boiling coolant (disfunctionally ironic?) all over the driveway. Now I have to finish my Powerpoint presentation, which makes me sad, because I wanted to go to bed while it is still my birthday. My birthday that Dan made into a great day.

twenty-one on the horizon

My family threw me a small birthday celebration today. After a 45 minute wait that was supposed to be 15, we had Chinese food. During the wait, I wandered out to the back of the plaza and looked up at the flower trees that used to be visible through the coffee shop window. That brought back memories. Then I walked over the the edge of the pond. I think the last time I was there was the day Dan and I spent five hours in or around the coffee shop. So many memories there.

I miss being a kid and having time slow down during the days and hours before my birthday party. I miss having those birthday parties. But, it's not so bad to just have some good food and desert, and sit with family for awhile. My grandma gave me a check and a book, but from my family I got a wrinkled envelope that had been in my mom's pocket. In it was a piece of graph paper with a floor plan of my room. One of the things I asked for was incentive to clean my room, because I've been saying for two years that would like to clean it. I might have liked the idea better in theory. On the floor plan were marked areas, with point values assigned. I get my real presents after I clean a marked area with a point value in it.

I'm in a sappy mood right now, warm and sort of nice, thinking of sentimental things. Today I had a few nice, sweet moments. Little moments that I probably won't ever tell anyone about, but just treasure whenever I think of them. My 21st birthday is perhaps more special than I thought. It's been a good day.

Now, will Dan plan anything fun for my night in Boston? Eh... he's never been that great with making plans. Maybe I shouldn't expect much.