4 Cents on Turning 29-and-a-half

It’s sad that after a certain age, people stop looking forward to birthdays.  As young children birthdays are second only to Christmas.  Not only is a birthday the one day a year dedicated to each individual, but there are also presents involved.  Also, each year that gets tacked on is a declaration of “I made it” and one more step to being a grown up.  And then you turn ten.  Finally, the double digits; a definite accomplishment.  Eleven and twelve are slightly difficult years where no one takes you seriously but birthdays still have that childish magic.  Then thirteen comes along and now you are a teenager.  Fourteen and fifteen signify the beginning of high school and learner’s permit.  Sixteen allows you to drive; seventeen has the best of both worlds because you are still a kid but close enough to adulthood.  Eighteen makes you a real adult instead of a pretend one where you can buy cigarettes, lottery tickets and porn.  I would like to say for the record that I purchased none of these on my eighteenth birthday despite the incessant encouragement from my friends; I just wasn’t interested. 

2 Cents on Turning 29-and-a-half

“Pretty soon you're gonna be 30 and it ain't gonna matter anymore! So you better get that one done.” - My mother, on if I should post this now or later.

In April, I got an email from Rita’s Italian Ice congratulating me on my half-birthday and inviting me to celebrate with a small ice, any flavor, on them.

I love all things ice cream-y, so I was kind of excited about the free Italian ice. But I’m still sorting out my feelings toward the half-birthday. I knew April 27th was coming, of course, and even before the coupon arrived was well aware of the occasion it marked: my turning twenty-nine and a half.