Birthday Musings

     I am no stranger to inconvenience and cancellations on my birthday. (Insert world's smallest violin here.) Having your birthday fall on a holiday weekend means that when you go to a preppy private school, people take off for Vail, CO for the weekend to ski. Or in public school, you have your February vacation that week, so you have a legitimate chance to go away somewhere warmer and more fun. Also, having your birthday the day after Valentine's Day (not as bad as same-day, but still not fun) means training every man you ever date that they are two separate days, and should be treated with equal respect and importance.
  Relating to my previous Snow Day post, that winter of snow storms also dropped about a foot or more the day of my Sweet Sixteen (yes. I had one.) and it got cancelled and then moved to the next night. This year, they are saying it might start snowing Monday night and into Tuesday. This, of course, is kryptonite to my mother, who has missed funerals and weddings whether it was 3 inches or 3 feet.

     So upon talking to her last night and her voicing her fears, I informed her that she had best not miss my 30th birthday dinner, because we have reservations at Scarpetta and they cannot be changed or moved, and if they don't come I will have 2 very lucky friends joining me for dinner instead because I don't care if it HAILS, I am eating at Scarpetta!

     On a more amusing note, last week I received a text message from my brother that read, "How many brownie points do I get if I DON'T go to Brazil for Carnaval so I can be here for your 30th birthday?" To which I replied, "We will miss you terribly. Mom shall never forgive you. You shall be flogged along 4th Street until we arrive at Aroma where you can make it up to me :-)"
Because really, if someone offers you the chance to go to Brazil (Hi Corrie!!!) even if it means missing your little sister's 30th birthday, you should seriously consider going. If I was offered tickets to Venice for Carnival (yes, it is spelled differently in Italy from Brazil) but would miss my brother's milestone birthday (also born on a holiday weekend, but in May. Fun for the whole family!) I would be seriously torn. Hell you could offer me tickets ANYWHERE in Italy, even in the torridly hot August weather, and I'd probably still want to drop everything and go. But that's me and my love of Italy.

     So, if you live in the NYC area, hope for my sake that the snow stays away until Tuesday. If not for the sake of my parents getting safely in and out of the city, then do it so I can wear my cute heels with my fabulous new party dress without losing toes to snow-induced frostbite!
(And if you think you might be one of the lucky friends invited to dinner in place of absent parents, I understand you rooting for bad weather. But if I lose a toe, know I will have one of yours removed for every one I lose.)