Happy Monday and a Belated Happy Birthday to Me!

Oh, this Monday feels good! Not like all last week, which didn't feel good at all.

I expected to be sad during the week leading up to August 4, but I wasn't. I was sad from August 4 on. All week. I just wanted to cry. And did, quite a bit, when I was alone. I think some of it was (or is) a mid-life crisis as I turned 44 yesterday.

Now Princess can't say my age backwards. She always asks if I'm 34. Um, No. Not quite. Strike that. Reverse it. Not anymore---it's 44 no matter how you say it.

The only good thing is that the 2 digits add up to 8, which, if you're Chinese, is lucky.

So, Saturday was a very blue day with a couple of bright spots. We had a lovely family trip to the pool. They alllll went. Which never happens. Because Hitch is like a cat who hates the water, and Madden is just too cool to be there when none of his friends are.

To cheer me up more, Dh took me to the Andretti Speed Lab. I might have said I wanted to go at one time because I have this latent adventurous streak. Mostly, I like to watch other people do extreme sports. We couldn't get into a race for an hour and a half, so I had plenty of time to regret any suggestion that I would ever want to do something so silly as race little tiny cars around a winding track at top speed!

We killed time (and spent $$$, which is all part of their evil plan. I'm sure you can never get a race time within an hour of your arrival!) and played racing video games. Which were scary in their own right. Especially because we sucked so bad and had a real race coming up! I had to keep reminding myself that it's okay that my Nascar vehicle was out of control, because it wouldn't hurt when I crashed. It's okay that the brakes didn't work.

The worst part was waiting, in the little race kart, wearing a heavy, claustrophobic helmet with the engine just 2 inches from your right shoulder spewing out massive amounts of heat and fumes. I just tried to keep breathing and remind myself that I wouldn't be MORE miserable after the race started because adrenaline would take over.

And it did. It was actually kind of fun. If it didn't come with a hefty price tag for 8 minutes of "fun," I could probably get addicted and try to do better. As it was, I didn't embarrass myself. (I don't think.) I didn't spin out. I didn't burn myself on the engine getting in or out. I didn't ram the car into a wall and need an employee to get me back on track. I didn't even get the Blue Flag meaning move over and let others pass! Best of all, I didn't get into the tiny car wearing an above-the-knee dress giving a show to all the eager young men watching!

Yesterday, my birthday, was a lovely day. Unexpectedly happy in every way. Several of my friends remembered me. Thanks, Linda, Rach, and Veronica! Another family trip to the pool (except for Hitch, who had had enough Saturday!), lots of relaxing in front of the Olympics, cross-stitching, and a nice party at dinner. Beautiful gifts from my family.

That was the best gift---my family.

So here it is, Monday. A good Monday---for lots of reasons.

And did I mention that the neighbors have all gone back to school?