Birthday...big deal

I turned 51 today. This birthday hasn't quite measured up to last year, which was of course a milestone, it being my 50th. Can't quite top being in Nashville with Michael McDonald (well, at his concert, that is). It also can't measure up to all the great musical experiences of last weekend. Not that I really expected it to. Yet, it has slipped by unnoticed this year by people who sent me their wishes last year (and whose birthdays I noted quite significantly this past year). I did get some nice message board postings. Except there's one thing I don't quite understand. Some people who as far as I know have been very friendly toward me left birthday greetings for someone else whose birthday was the same as mine, with our postings in about the same spot, but passed over me. Go figure...

I will mention names here. I have one message for Stone Cold Creamery. If you are going to have a birthday club where you send people coupons for a free ice cream, please set it up so they have the coupons the next morning...not in the middle of the day when they've already left the house to go celebrate. Chances are, people will not go out of their way to make a return visit to collect. Of course, the people at the Mall of America store "couldn't do anything about it". After requesting at least a free sample of something, I went to a competitor and enjoyed a healthier fat-free frozen yogurt with caramel instead.

I bought two birthday gifts to myself. One was a headset microphone so I can learn to eventually unleash podcasts on the world. However, it looks like it's only going to work on my laptop, so I need to get some software on it to convert .wav files to .mp3. Anyhow, stay tuned!

Then, as I was heading out of the mall, this gal at a kiosk practically grabbed me and pulled me over to have a look at my nails. She then took my index finger nail and gave it and my hand a full treatment that had it looking like I just stepped out of having a manicure and took 10 years off the look of my right hand. I did have this done once before someplace and remember being very impressed, but not enough to part with money at the time. This girl was not about to take no for an answer--so I told her it was my birthday and she'd have to cut me a deal. Well, she did, to the tune of 35% off. So I'll try this myself on the rest of my fingers. If nothing else, it may discourage me from being a nailbiter. I'm not a big fan of long nails, but this buff polish stuff does make them look pretty slick. I just hope it's not like going to the hair salon, where you can't quite replicate the look yourself afterward.

So not the greatest birthday, but not a total bust. At 7 p.m, it got good..