Tick...tock...tick...tock

In about five hours my it will be my birthday. Okay, technically I suppose it is already, but I never really got used to this whole change-the-date-at-midnight thing. Seems it should at least be daylight, you know? It never seems official in terms of birthday until you get to the time of birth, and in my case that's 8:14 in the morning. Which is kind of freaky, because when I wake up on my own (no alarm) it's usually...yeah, 8:14. I wonder if anyone's ever done a study on that? Of course, since I'm not a morning person I usually go right back to sleep. Maybe I should have been born at night. :)

I searched the web for a nifty birthday quiz, but they were mosty self-absorbed sorts of things, and if you've been reading this blog for any length of time you should know that I'm trying to get away from some of that. (I found one where the girl went on about the colour of her eyes being blue with a distinctive yellow ring...gee that seems so familiar. Like, who else cares?) Anyway, I thought I'd spare you that and fall back on my specialty, useless trivia.

Ahem.

In 1967 (with thanks to Infoplease)

The world had 3.485 billion people on it.
US life expectancy was 70.5 years.
China tested its first hydrogen bomb.
The US and the USSR proposed the first of a series of nuclear nonproliferation treaties.
The median US household income was $7,143 (in today's dollars).
US unemployment was 3.8%.
The US government spent $157.46 billion a year.
A first-class stamp cost 5 cents.
Race riots wreaked havoc in Detroit, New York City, and Birmingham.
The first black Supreme Court justice, Thurgood Marshall, was sworn in.
Rolling Stone and New York Magazine debuted.
Movies included The Graduate, Guess Who's Coming to Dinner, In the Heat of the Night, and Cool Hand Luke
Song of the year was "Michelle" by the Beatles.
Astronauts Col. Virgil I. Grissom, Col. Edward White II, and Lt. Cmdr. Roger B. Chaffee were killed in the Apollo I fire.
The Six Day War was fought between the Arabs and Israelis.
Pulsars and quarks were discovered.
The first successful human heart transplant was performed.
Che Guevara, Spencer Tracy, and Upton Sinclair died.

Now that I've paid homage to the rest of the world...

It seems a little odd to be turning thirty-six. I do, finally, feel my age, as opposed to the years when emotionally I pretty much was stuck at 15-17. (And, I must admit, it's a little gratifying that most people don't believe I'm 36--they think I'm about 26-28. I guess looking like I was 16 through my 20s is starting to pay off.) But when my mom was 36 she had just gone through a divorce and had a 17-year-old heading off to college. So, I'm in a totally different place in my life than she was. On the other hand, I don't have a teenager to deal with. :)

This past year or so has probably been the hardest for me, after the year of my divorce and that of my parents. I mean, I sort of went crazy, although at least not in a lock-'em-up-and-throw-away-the-key kind of way. Well, maybe. At least no one, including myself, got hurt during my breakdown. I want to thank those of you out there who have put up with me, helped me, guided me, etc., etc. I really am glad you're there, and I hope I can return the favour.

But this year is looking up. I'm working on finally getting a handle on building up some financial security (hence the Suze Orman book listed to the left). I'm consolidating my student loans. That will free up some money and I might actually be able to get a car payment out of that. I have some debt (although thankfully, not nearly the average) left over from when I was married, and I've discovered that they have passed the statute of limitations. That doesn't mean I don't have to pay them, but it does mean that no one can sue me to get it and win. I'm going to get a copy of my credit report and check to see what still needs to be deal with, and talk to a credit counseling agency to make sure I take care of what's left. Really, I think that puts me in a much better position creditwise. It even might mean in a few years I could get a house, which would be VERY nice. Although, I don't think I'll be able to do it so long as I'm just barely floating over $20000 a year. Sigh. I love my job--I hate my pay. The latest job to post in the area, though, is ideal with the exception that it is out in the middle of nowhere--Hyden, which is nearly to Hazard, Kentucky. The pay is great, and it's a nursing/midwifery school with a glorious history, etc., etc. But it's too far for a commmute, the big roads don't go straight there, and somehow I'm not sure that a liberal bisexual pagan girl's good to go in Eastern Kentucky. So, until a job opens up that pays and has a comparable array of benefits and work environment, I'll probably work a little on the side to help build up some savings, etc.

I've been working more on the spiritual side of things, too. I'm taking better care of myself physically, too. And when I compare my schedule with a couple of years ago--well, there are some reasons I hit a breaking point.

I feel so much better emotionally. My house is reasonably organised. I have a pretty decent circle of companions, including my four-legged ones, but people as well. I feel competent. I'm finally feeling like dating. The world itself seems to be going to hell in a handbasket, but my little piece of it seems better. Go figure.

I'm finding that what I want most for my birthday this year is dirt. Yeah, I know, world peace would probably be better, but not very practical. Besides, you never wish for world peace when the genie pops out of the lamp. There's always a catch to those wishes anyway, and the best one for world peace is if everyone's dead so they can't fight amongst themselves. So, back to what I can manage. Keep in mind that I garden. Every year at this time I get in gardening mode, but I'm usually too broke for the essentials. I want to use my ammunition boxes to build a raised bed near my patio since none of my dirt around the apartment buildings is great. (Yes, I use ammo boxes for flowerpots. Such a nice, hippie-kind-of-thing to do). I figure some Miracle-Gro potting soil would be lovely. Although, I must say, even with the poor soil, my roses are already leafing out well--and I put them in the ground a couple of years ago when I moved in November. I've never seen miniature roses take off like that. But a raised bed would also help keep the guys who take care of the grounds away from some of my plants that get mowed every year, like the yarrow. (Really, it just looks like a weed.)

Well, it's four a.m. and my cat is staring at me to tell me it's time to go back to sleep. If your birthday happens to be tomorrow, happy birthday, too. Oh, and a big thanks to my mom. She had a difficult time with me (not so much in delivery, but in the months leading up to it) but she pulled through. I sometimes wonder how many times she wanted to just put me back (as you've no doubt figured, I was one of those kids who chattered incessantly, was a little too smart for my own good, but had no concept of social skills. In other words, major geekazoid.) She's getting married this month (?!) to a great guy and I think she's pretty happy herself. She deserves it.