Who the heck do I think I am?

This is the first year I've been on Facebook for my birthday. So many people "wrote" on my "wall" - I feel a little lame about it. Is there some kind of rule that says you have to wish everyone on FB a happy birthday? Do I now "owe" all those people birthday greetings?

I'm not good at that. That's a tremendous amount of pressure! There's a reason I don't send Christmas cards or give presents at the office (when I have one). It's not that I don't appreciate it, but I'm bad at reciprocating. And furthermore, I'm just not sure how to deal with that kind of attention.

It's quite a contrast to the year when I was in a new job, so no one knew it was my birthday, I had a rehearsal that night and no one there knew it was my birthday, and I got stopped on the way home for speeding. I didn't say anything to the cop, either, but he can't have failed to see from my license that it was, in fact, my birthday. In fact, I think that's the only reason he made it a warning instead of a ticket. As he handed my my license and registration and the paperwork back, he said, "Happy Birthday" - and as I drove away, that's when I started getting misty. It was 11:30 PM on my birthday and he was the first person all day to acknowledge it.

Not that I make a habit of feeling sorry for myself on birthdays. My family really just doesn't make a big deal out of them. From the time I was about 13, my idea of a birthday celebration was to go out with family friends and maybe have cheesecake for dessert. I didn't have big parties, because among other things, in Rochester in February, you've got a high probability that everyone you invite will be sick, or the weather will be so bad you have to cancel. And nowadays I'm nearly always in a rehearsal on my birthday (at least the last 4 years!), so making plans is just not big on the list.

OTOH, I'm still having a little trouble with this birthday just passed. I know I'd have less of an issue if my job situation were not what it is. But even without that... I never thought I'd be my age and still so far behind on everything. I found out the other day that at least two people in the show, whom I thought were older (not by much, but a little bit!) than I am, are actually younger - one by a year and one by four years. Yikes. It makes me feel rather pessimistic.

I have received one very odd present... One of my birthday twins sent a DVD because, as he put it, even though he's also out of work and shouldn't be spending the money, this was "a gem" that I would "appreciate." It's called The Lost Skeleton of Cadavra. Apparently it's a spoof of B movies. Er. Okay....


Meanwhile, I have to take action tomorrow with the temp agency because my W-2 was supposedly mailed on 1/21 and I still haven't received it. I also want to follow-up on the jobs I interviewed for - I think a week is a good length of time to wait without making contact - and gently push to see if I can make sure they know I'm still very interested. I'm also planning to call Unemployment on Wednesday and see if I can file a claim for the temp stint. Even if it's only a few buck a week, it's something.

I've been working at the theatre (and will continue to do so next week) building sets. Yesterday we had to clean the place because they're renting it tonight - so we had to put all the set-building stuff onstage behind the traveler curtain and completely clean / reset the house for the event, clean the bathrooms, etc. And it turns out that the older gentleman who does most of their set-building and maintenance used to work for Universal! We got into a long discussion about the parks and the rides. He was there for 10 years - though I don't know if anyone he knew there still works there. I'd still like to work there, dangit. I wish there were a tailor-made job for me.... Maybe it's time to check in on that again, too.

In other news, the computer is still hanging in there (knock wood), although the case is now really pulling apart at the seam. There's a strip of plastic that's supposed to sit between the top of the case and the DVD-ROM drive that is now free-floating. The DVD still works, but it rattles while the disc is turning. But I'm glad it still works because I've got 4 more episodes of Doctor Who (series 5) still to watch (and they don't work in the DVD player in the TV)....

Speaking of watching things, Netflix brought me Ponyo this weekend. Adorable! And so definitely Miyazaki. But that song at the end? ROTFL. And all I could think was that it is quintessentially Japanese, somehow. These are the same people who brought the world Sushi TV.

Yes, my life is Soooo Exciting, everyone!

So.

I drove my car to the mechanic this morning to ask about the potential harm to the car if I drove around with the emissions system leaking.

The mechanic didn't even want to look at it. He said, "It's not going to lock your engine. The most that'll happen is you might see a decline in your mileage. But if you're getting rid of it...don't bother doing anything with it. Come in right before you're about to trade it in and we'll turn off the engine light for you. Then let them deal with it."

Which was GREAT. But it left me with my car, halfway to work, and nowhere to leave it.

So I drove back to the mall again, and parked by Best Buy this time, and caught the bus. Missing the first one, as usual. But that's okay.

Work was...work.

But then. I took the bus back and got off at the mall and went into Best Buy to see if they had a. any sort of case for the sidekick; b. anything inexpensive and t00bulous to buy. They didn't have a case that would fit, but that's okay. I walked around the movies and carried a $4.99 Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure for a bit, and also a $14.99 double-set of Good Morning, Vietnam and Dead Poet's Society - all of which were short on features, but hey, the *movie* is what you watch most often?

Then I saw the Alien Nation Movie Collection. For $40. Which felt too expensive. So I put it back.

Then I saw something *else* for $25. Which felt about right. But I said to myself, "I should check it on Amazon before I get it. I wonder how much the Alien Nation is?"

Then I remembered that I had a SIDEKICK with me.

Ahem. They have the Alien Nation set for about $26ish - so that was right out. But the other thing? It was actually $2 more expensive, which, by the time I paid tax, was just about the same. So I put back Bill, Ted, and Robin-squared and bought the other thing.

You guys.

Voyagers. Jon-Erik Hexum and the kid.

OH. MY. GODS.

Yeah, so when I was 10? I wanted to be that kid. Not because I crushed on Jon-Erik Hexum but because I'd get to TRAVEL THROUGH TIME. With a device kind of like the old TARDIS, in that it *malfunctioned* all the time and there was no predictability. YAYS.

This is SUCH a guilty pleasure. I'm sure it's going to be utterly painful, because, hello, it wasn't that good then, but to a 10-year-old, it was AWESOME.

And yeah, I shouldn't be buying DVDs just before Pennsic. But hey.

Jon-Erik Hexum. As a bad Jules Verne pun. And the OMNI.

I'm just sayin'.

Anyway - the point is that the Sidekick? Totally made me feel good about my purchase. (Thanks, Heidi!)

And I've just driven the car for probably the last time until I return from war. Sigh.