Happy Birthday... Me!

OK I'll say it completely without shame. I love my birthday, I love presents, I love the attention, I love that every birthday I have ever had (that I remember) has been a beautiful day, I know it's strange to write this the day AFTER my birthday, but to me it's the same day, haven't gone to bed yet, and this is the first time I had all day. So Yes, today I turned seventeen years old. For some reason beyond my comprehension seventeen feels soooooo much older then sixteen does! Last year I tried to make my birthday this huge special day cause it was my sweet sixteen, and Paz had flown in from Seattle, and I ended up not even enjoying myself! But this year I had so much fun! I relaxed in my P.J.'s all morning working on a sewing project and watching The Lord Of The Rings. Then went to lunch with my parents at my favorite restaurant, North Star Cafe, came home played with my .... one of my presents. Later in the evening I went to the temple and sat for Satsang, sorta kinda did Pratiksha Paada Pooja* and got birthday blessings from Swamiji. I am having a party tomorrow, but it will be a calm affair, with just some of my closest friends from Delaware. So what did I get? Well my sister gave me two pet baby geese. One week apart whom I named Gertrude (the older) and Gwenivere (The younger, and cuter, pictured above) I also got a brand new camera which is very nice, and took the wonderful pictures I hope you looked at. Also my dear friend Kismet made me the beautiful (vegan!) cake pictured above. Thank You! *Yippee footnotes! I have always wanted to do these, even though I hate it when other people use them, so distracting, anyway I haven't gone or watched Satsang in ages, but completely amazed myself by knowing almost every word to every Sanskrit mantra uttered during the long, but yes beautiful pooja. It was funny doing it, because I'm sitting there sideways to Swamiji, concentrating so hard on doing the pooja perfect, I was completely focused on the action itself and forgot to whom I was preforming. Then our temple head whispers to me to actually wave the lamp at Swamiji himself, not just his golden Paadukas (spelling?) sitting before us. Suddenly it hits me, wow! I'm doing Pooja to Swamiji! It was cool.

OH and By the way, thank you very much friends of facebook who wished me happy birthday. It was pretty awesome logging on and seeing all of your good wishes! Well that's all for now, hopefully I'll write about my party, and pet geese. Don't expect anything to soon though.