Many Happy Returns of the Day

Wednesday was my birthday. Thomas, in a sweet birthday email, pointed out that I was born on a Wednesday, and said that he considers birthdays on the same day of the week the celebrant was born to be special. To be honest, I was a little bit dreading this birthday. Not because of the age (I turned 33) but because I was worried I'd be lonely. Diego was in the US. My two closest friends here, Mary Beth & Erika were both (ironically) in Jaipur with their families. So it was just going to be Ashley, Luis, and me. I don't often like to admit this, but Thomas was right and I was wrong. It WAS special and I was not lonely.

Diego called early in the morning from Atlanta to wish me a Happy Birthday. Then, Anita (Diego's secretary) and Anwar (our driver) both texted me to wish me "Many Happy Returns of the Day." When Pauline arrived, I told her it was my birthday. She shook my hand and also wished me Many Happy Returns of the Day. I was able to Skype with Mom, Dodie & family (who sweetly sang to me), Sarah, Jeanette and Angela. I got email messages from loads of family and friends. I even got a dedicated post on my family's NCAA Hoops Website. My Grandfather, who I think has been timely and prompt for most of his 99 years sent me a card in mid-February to make sure it arrived in time. I put it up on the fridge and waited three weeks to open it. With the uncertainty of mail delivery, it was in fact the only card I had. [I know there are quite a few on their way.]

I decided that it wasn't birthday without cake. I also decided that homemade cake beats store bought cake every time (I actually decided this more than a decade ago, and simply reminded myself of this fact). So I hopped in a rickshaw and headed over to Vijays Food Provisions to pick up a $4 Betty Crocker cake mix. Yes, to me, cake from a cake mix box is "home made". It's my birthday; I get to make up the rules.
Luis was eager to help with the stirring of the batter. And the flinging of the batter. And the dripping of the batter into the toaster oven (bet YOUR cake mix doesn't included those directions). Still, the cake making didn't go quite as planned, needing to substitute olive oil for vegetable oil (olives are a veggie, no?). And I couldn't find powered sugar for making the icing, so I had to put my big-granular sugar in the mixer. The first 2C up sugar I "powderized" wasn't actually so powdery, but I didn't notice until I'd poured it into the butter. Too late to do anything - except try to powderize more sugar to even out the granular consistency. It got better, but never quite right. In fact, nervous about the olive oil and the granular icing, I waited until almost midnight to have my piece. It wasn't the cake of my dreams.

Thinking of birthdays past - the surprise party Eileen McCarthy hosted for my 15th (maybe my most fun birthday EVER), my 19th party which cemented my now 14-year friendship with Sarah Saelinger (Rimicci), the party I threw for my 21st at BC (I won't reference the most memorable parts b/c this is a family blog - and because my parents read it, but for those of you who were there, you remember), Angela's icing mishap on my 25th, my 26th party for which Jeanette came from NY and Angela came from AZ, the bowling party Diego surprised me with for my 30th and the trip to Paris he gave me for my 31st - this year wasn't what I would have planned for myself. Not the birthday of my dreams.

But this life I have... My friends and my family. My husband, my son and my dog. All of the people here in Mumbai who are so kind and generous to Luis and Ashley (and Diego & me). The good health that I have and that my friends all have. All of the people around the world who love me. Those are the things dreams are made of. And I had all of that on my birthday on Wednesday. How could I be lonely?