Best Birthday Ever!!!

Taking 3 days to celebrate 3 decades was the way to go 😀

Friday: I got off work early so I could go home and be all girly and take time to get ready for dinner with zen_cat that night. I’d already had my hair cut that morning – first hair cut in about 19 months! Shannon helped me decide what to wear, then when zen_cat arrived, Shannon and Shanta took their lion’s share of photos of us! zen_cat came bearing two very large packages which he told me were both part of a whole. Yes, each were part of a whole indeed. Part of a WHOLE DARKROOM!!!!!!!!! One package contained an enlarger, and the other package contained everything else I need for a darkroom – all the chemicals, trays, clips, paper, safe light etc. He had researched what a darkroom requires, then put it all together for me. /me is so in love!!!

He then took me out for a beautiful Japanese dinner at Iku Yakitori. Much delicious food, umeshuu and sake was consumed. Right there, at that point, it was already the best birthday ever.

Saturday: Was filled with cleaning and making things in the morning, then filled with friends from mid-afternoon on. Most amazing was to have Tracy, Shanta and Shannon all there with me. Not to mention that five sets of hands makes both preps and clean-ups much quicker and easier *grin* We tested the capacity of my apartment, and found it to be remarkably good! Better than anticipated, which is good to know for future 😉

teknohippi completely blew me away with the present of money for an airfare to Japan, collected from so many wonderful friends. Amusingly, and touchingly, she was not the only person to think of this, as she and weaselfetish both thought along the same lines. Little did she know, that I had just received an email the day before from Stu asking if I would say something at their reception and I was working up the heart to tell him that I couldn’t go after all. Now it seems I *am* going. I am still waving between just shock and speechless wow, to extreme excitement as I think of all the friends I’ll get to see and the two weddings I’ll be attending.

To say I was, and continue to be, overwhelmed, is an understatement. To everyone who was a part of this, thankyou thankyou thankyou thankyou thankyou thankyou thankyou thankyou thankyou THANKYOU THANKYOU THANKYOU!!!!! Just…amazing!

Sunday: An easy morning, with clean-up and breakfast at a local cafe zen_cat and I found a couple of weeks ago. Tracy stayed behind, to take her time getting up she said, but instead it was to vacuum and mop and do the final cleaning things. Of course, I did not discover this until returning home much later in the day, and was very grateful for everyone’s help and insistence on cleaning in the morning, when Dad and Jan decided to visit on their way home.

Sunday was family day – lunch at Soul Mama with Mum, Dad and Jan, Sue and Jed (Rafe’s parents), plus Fi, Tracy, Shanta and Shannon. It was the first time for all the parents to meet each other and the whole day seemed to come off without a hitch, which was wonderful. The banquet was just divine, and the quantities of food extremely well judged.

Dad and Jan came and saw my new apartment afterwards and brought along a very welcome addition of a microwave to add to my kitchen – something for which Shanta effused much gratitude. Thank heaven for parents who bring their children into the realm of civilisation! *laughs*

The microwave was just in time for us to introduce zen_cat to smores. Mmmmm. So good. So sticky. So wrong in every way!

One more highlight of the day was a phone call from daisynerd and her lovely Niels in the Netherlands. They sang happy birthday in English and in Dutch, then two other songs in Dutch. It can never be overestimated just how good it is to hear friends’ voices after a long time of not seeing them 🙂

I then retired with zen_cat to his apartment to read in bed and fall asleep deliciously early.

So now I am 30. I have a darkroom waiting to be set up. I am going back to Japan for a week or so in October. I have the gorgeous zen_cat by my side, and his side for me to be by. I have great family and amazing friends, all of who make me feel so loved.

I truly am the luckiest girl in the world.