Please put your trays to the upright position and prepare for middle age

I had a birthday yesterday; I turned 36. I’ll pause here for a moment while those of you who are under 30 can fearfully imagine the ghastly physical and mental deprivations associated with being in your mid-thirties, and those of you who are above 40 can fondly remember the vigour and energy of your early middle years.

I’ve developed a bit of ambivalence about my birthdays lately, either because it seems like I’ve had so many or because it’s an inherited trait. This birthday had a different texture though, and that was refreshing. It started with presents in the morning with Claire and our daughter Amelia. I didn’t get the flickr pro account I’ve been jonesing, but I did get some great stuff. Just little things, since we’re economizing this year, but excellent all the same.

Throughout the day at work, (and also into the next–still the 14th in North America) I had a pretty regular stream of instant messages, emails and phone calls from friends and family wishing me happy birthday. That was really cool and mostly unexpected; I’m sure I got some last year as well, but this year they reached a critical mass. Each time I got one I’d stop working for a minute and remember that it was my birthday.

Then when I arrived at home I found some balloons attached to our letter box. Inside the house there were decorations too. Everyone had a glass of champagne and put on a funny hat. Amelia (who is 2) wouldn’t stop talking about the birthday cake. Eventually the cake arrived and she and I blew the candles out together. That was fun.

Even though the day was just an ordinary one, it was also extraordinary. I had a great birthday; so thank-you everyone.

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