And Then I Stepped in Gum . . .

You Say It's Your Birthday

Da-nah-nah-nah. Yes, it's my birthday today. I figured out last night that I'm now twice as old as I was when I went to college. How's that for making you feel old? Granted, I went to college when I was 16, but still.

And as cliche as it is, I found myself examining wrinkles this morning as I plucked those random hairs that started appearing on my chin when I hit 30. When does this stuff happen? And how awful that once a wrinkle appears, there's nothing you can do to obliterate it, no matter how unfortunate its placement.

And yesterday I found myself drooling over clothes in a catalog, and it was a Travelsmith catalog. Not hot, fashionable clothes, but clothes you wear on your bus tour of Ireland with the group of elderly Americans who complain the whole time they're in another country. OK, yes, the Travelsmith clothes are very nice -- classy and sophisticated, which I like to think I could someday be (although maybe not if I'm driving a purple minivan) -- but still. On the same page I saw a dress I liked, I saw a traveling suit that reminded me an awful lot of my grandmother.

So I'm 32 and I'm still not quite who I wanted to be when I grew up. I wonder if that ever happens. Will I ever look around and say to myself, "This, this is what I want to be doing and who I want to be"? I hope so. I could do with some contentment right now. But maybe it's an inner thing -- something I have to bring to myself, instead of waiting around for it to come to me. I'll have to ponder that a bit.

In the meantime, maybe I'll recapture some of my inner child by hanging out with Ian for a few minutes. That's all the blogging you're going to get from me today.

posted by Jennifer Morgan, at 2:51 PM