Mindful-fun-da-mentals

Explorations of mind, paths, and life

Stuffed & Squalwatching

Posted on August 22, 2008 - Filed Under self reflect

So, today is my birthday. I have gained another year and am teetering on the edge of 40 (which, I hope, is finally making my parents proud because I am catching up to them :-P). The week has been filled with anticipation (of the “Hurricane”), weathery teases (T.S. Fay clinging to Florida like a baby to mama’s thigh), school cancellations on days that were harmless, and NO cancellations on days that even I wouldn’t stand outside to catch the bus in, minor surgery, and, of course, my birthday. We had intended to head to Carmen & Warren’s home in Naples, but with the weather so wishy washy, we just were not sure what to do, so we canceled (sounds like the school system!) And now, I spend a part of my birthday, updating the world on my blog. Actually, I have been redesigning www.mycomputerangel.com with WordPress, hoping to make my site a bit more interactive and searchable… Between calls from family who love me and wish me a good B-Day, it is going well.

Earlier this week I had minor outpatient surgery to remove a growth under my skin that was triggered by an injury over 14 years ago. I am fairly certain that I had actually chipped a piece of bone in my elbow, despite the xray and doctor’s “your fine, just some phantom pain,” it continued to pain me. Ever since then it has been growing a mass around it [my medical opinion]. It has been painful – making it difficult for people to casually touch my elbow. I tried a cortisone shot before my marriage which resulted in less pain but a horribly atrophied elbow that lost all pigmentation and caved in (took 2 years to regenerate and the mass was even bigger!) So, with mixed anxiety and relief my dermatologist sliced me up and popped that sucker out. [Picture not included for the faint of heart]. On my way out, seeing that I don’t have insurance and have to pay cash for any Dr. related issues, I picked up my funky morsel floating in formaldehyde and brought it home. Yes, behind the doctors back – HEY I PAID FOR THE THING! As I analyzed the pictures, since my eyes are turning 39 and not as sharp as they were, I noticed that it looks an awful lot like the profile of a grumpy old man, with an oversize schnoz and his wide eye shut. Seems to me he’s a bit dejected about his release, and from the wrinkles and masses, he was a busy fellow. Over the last 14 years he got to the size of 1/2 a quarter! I came out of it with 3 stitches – the most ever!

My dad came by today to take me and the clan (not Gizmo though) to my birthday lunch. I really don’t know what my favorite food is any more – and between seafood and Cheesecake Factory, the Cheez won. I had to tolerate an hour ride there since my dad was driving and he LOVES taking every back road ever invented from point A to point B. In fact, I am surprised that he didn’t have the GPS going, because he likes to set the sucker to “shortest route”, then “freak it out” by repeatedly turning when instructed to go straight. I usually bring my lameboy or a game of solitaire to keep me entertained, seeing that most of the route is polluted and impoverished in L.A. (lower Apopka), and I can only take so much lack of regard for the environment. Arriving was a relief – I was starving, and I decided to order my favorite dish, WHICH is now NOT my favorite dish after I tasted the Portabello burger that Gary ate in front of me. The Portabello burger that he let me sample only 4 times, refusing to share halfseys, and licking his lips every few seconds like the dog when he’s discovered a steaming pile of cat poo. It was a challenge not to jump over the table and offer him all kinds of favors in trade for the rest of that beautiful sandwich, probably something the dog thinks when he sees us eating meatballs or something that smells tempting. [Yeah, Yeah, I promise to lick your face REAL hard next time if you let me taste that meatball!]

Anyhow, Gary took a picture of me enjoying my “not-fries” salad [the kind that won’t go on your fork and results in your hubby looking at you awkwardly and asking, “What, you playing checkers on that plate?”] and my “not my favorite anymore” Navajo Sandwich, and as I pulled the pictures down from the camera I noticed just how BEAUTIFUL my skin looks. In fact, it took 30 years to get that skin, seeing that I have spent the majority of my adulthood peppered with adolescent zits that have be infuriatingly difficult to get rid of. I saw this picture and said, “Wow, that’s me at 39!” and for once I was actually impressed that I didn’t have to photoshop anything – and can I also mention that my grandmother’s genes have done wonders to keep me free of wrinkles? But ultimately, it was my sister’s homemade “Secret Magic Face Stuff” that she prepared back in April [and is getting painfully low, hint hint]. So, my amazing little sister, thank you for my BEAUTIFUL Birthday face!

The trip home, my dad was a bit more thoughtful and decided to run a little more of a direct route home. As we came to the end of Maitland where they are currently constructing some puzzle of an exchange he noted that the road went straight (something it has never done – it usually ends at a T) and the rest went like this:

Dad: “Oooo look, is that road OPEN? Look, the road goes straight!”
Me: Shooting him a stinky glance, “Don’t you DARE go straight!”
Dad: “Well I gotta go straight sometime, I can’t be gay forever!”

Yeah, that’s my dad’s humor. Now you know where I got MY goofiness from. My birthday isn’t over. Since plans to Naples were shot by Fay, we are going bowling with friends so I can show off my three stitches and beautiful birthday face. Happy birthday to me! And you bet I am putting the bumpers up – It’s my birthday and I can have bumpers if I want to!

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