...A dress o' calico for the pretty Navajo. Get along. Muuule. Get along. Mule train (gidda-ah).

[hazelchaz]

Presents. I don't have birthday parties every year. Oh, I still have birthdays, I don't try to deny the passing of time. I have my parents' (and grandparents'/great-aunts') examples to live up to. My mom had a white streak in her hair by her 40s, probably earlier. So I don't dye my salt-and-pepper beard. (Looking back at the past few years of pictures, I've concluded that the warranty ran out on my beard color when I turned 40.)

But speaking of numbers, I was surprised how many of the folks at the party were stymied by the "XLIV" on the cake. Guess they're not teaching roman numerals as well as they used to. Or I just absorbed them real well. (Does anyone know why old-school clocks have IIII instead of IV for four o'clock? I believe it has something to do with "IV" being the abbreviation for "Jupiter" and it would be disrespectful, if not dangerous, to inscribe the god's name on your clock. Or something like that, anyhow -- anyone have the straight scoop?)

Anyhow, the gifts: Elaine and Dale gave me a bag with some "Paradise" tropical tea, two magnetic toys, a jar of dry-roasted macadamias, milk and dark Lindt Lindor truffle balls. Plus two plastic flamingo whirligig, and a "Flamingo Floater" -- a plastic flamingo-decorated cup, with an inflatable collar I can put around it (to make it float) the next time I'm lounging around in the pool.

FER brought two dozen doughnuts from her local doughnuttery. I mentioned Kim's mock-Doubletree cookies earlier, and Tiffany's champagne. Tom and Marina brought two boxes of assorted See's Chocolates -- so we could serve one now (yep, we had an empty box by the end of the night) and save the other box for ourselves.

Got a Smart and Final gift card from xkokuux. Lisa's looking ahead to when I go shopping for the next party! Borders card from my neighbors, a check from my folks. Maria gave me a leather business card holder, so that when I have a business card from someone I can file it properly.

Jack Kim gave me an omnibus triple novel by John Sandford that he highly recommends. ala_mokita gave me the new Writers of the Future anthology. He also brought encouraging (cautiously optimistic) preliminary news of negotiations for the 2009 animelosangeles hotel contract. I assured him that having a convention the weekend of the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th of January, 2009, would be ideal, we just need to make sure that there's plenty of room in the hotel for what we want to do.

colleency has pledged me lunch -- frozen soup to keep in the fridge and reheat at will. Anastasia promised us dinner.

Pat and Eric gave me two CD's -- the remastered edition (with bonus tracks! three songs I've never heard of!) of ELO's Time, and the Office Space soundtrack. You all remember the driving-to-work scene with Mambo #8 playing, right? library_lynn promised me the Fountains of Wayne album, and gave me a Tom Holt book (and, later, Gaiman's Stardust).

Mikal and Brooke gave me a very large wooden spoon. (Suitable for stirring my 10-gallon barrel cooler.) They also gave me an even larger paddle. It's been suggested that I keep that, as my symbol of animelosangeles authority, or possibly turn it over to FER for Fairy Godfather use. I shudder to think of what a team whose mission is fomenting goodwill, and listening for complaints, would need with a weapon like this. Or perhaps it's symbolic -- you'll never be up a creek without a paddle? We didn't have time to go into the details. I should bring it to our next meeting and we'll discuss it further.

Who gave me the Buffy Season 1 DVDs? I know Evan James gave me the DVD Origin: Spirits of the Past.

You know, for not making a big deal out of it being my particular birthday, I got quite a nice selection here. Books, music, dvds, snacks, wine, toys, lawn decorations, kitchen implements... hit all the marks. Except maybe clothes, but that's okay, I've got plenty of clothes.

Comments

[divine-sage.livejournal.com]

Ha, I got the roman numerals at first glance. I guess it's easier for some than others. Amusing anecdote: You're the same age as my father, give or take a year (can't seem to remember his exact age..).

I imagine the Fairy Godfather squad could come up with some use for the paddle...