The Day I Turned 30

On July 19, 2007 I got up at 6:41. I made coffee, woke up Vince, let the cats out of their room, ate cereal and drove to work with the new GPS thing my wife got me for my birthday. I arrived two minutes late, but at the precisely correct location.

I read articles about the parts cost of the iPhone, and about the new Harry Potter movie coming out, last in the series. I wrote headlines for ads for a retirement community here in West Columbia. I called employees at a hospital in the upstate, hoping to get their stories of how they helped the community in unexpected ways. Instead I left messages and hoped for a call back. Maybe they were out helping the community.

I wrote a letter to Canon and tried to get them to fix my digital camera under warranty. The lens won't retract, nor will the camera turn on. For sympathy's sake, I included some of my favorite shots I had taken.

I wrote a birthday card for my sister, whose birthday was Monday. I should have put something in there about "belated," but didn't think to.

I got sung to by my Mom, and my co-workers, and I think by my brother-in-law Tom. It's hard to say if he was really singing or not. I bragged to him that I blew out all thirty candles on the birthday cake Jan made for me yesterday. It was delicious -- both the cake and the accomplishment.

I stood in a filthy motorcycle shop and paid for new tires, which should arrive sometime next week.

I ate peaches from Monetta, South Carolina, with ice cream and pound cake, and Teresa, who had drawn my name in the office birthday pool, even supplied some Disaronno, to drizzle over the top.

I tried to write a blog entry about lolcats, but ran short of time once again.

Also, again, I forgot to return my friend Ryon's lawnmower, the old-fashioned reel kind, which I borrowed and liked quite a bit but eventually had to return. It's still sitting in the car.

I looked forward to 7 pm, when I'll sit down to iChat with my mom using the new webcam thing I got her, so I can still see her on my birthday like always.

And then I sat down to write about all that happened on July 19, 2007, the day I turned 30 and commenced Decade Four of my earthly existence, and came up with this.

And even though it wasn't as good as I'd hoped it would be, I posted it anyway, because I really wanted to get home to Penelope.