My Birthday

This Friday is my birthday. It also marks the one year anniversary of my moving here to this city. I remember last year on the morning of my birthday, standing in my little apartment where I'd spent the first year of my new life as a single woman. I was surrounded by packing boxes, waiting for the moving van to arrive. I was very emotional. This was a huge move for me, both physically, and psychologically. In moving off the Island and leaving x behind, I was making the statement to myself that I had truly turned my back on my past. When the moving van rolled into view, I cried a little bit, and hugged myself. To most women of my age, arranging a move might not seem a very big deal. For me it was giant, because I'd been led to believe that I was incapable of taking care of myself.

So here I am now. I'm living in a nice apartment with a fireplace, I have my beloved piano. I've found a wonderful job where I fit so perfectly its as though I've always been there. With my other jobs I couldn't stop the feeling that something was wrong. There was always a tension there. I knew somehow that the job would not last, and sure enough, none of them did. But with this one, everything has quickly fallen into place! I'm confidant in my work, and I get along wonderfully with my co workers. My boss is kind and helpful. The work is enjoyable. I get to wear nice clothes. I get to play the piano, choosing from among about twenty pianos - grand pianos, uprights, electric pianos.... During my days off, although I enjoy the time off, I actually look forward to going back to work. I'm so glad all of this fell into place in time for my birthday.

I've received two great gifts already. My brother-in-law, his wife (my sister) and their little girl came by a couple of weeks ago to bring me the gift they'd gotten for me. I came out to my patio where they were standing, peeked around the fence surrounding my patio, and there was the most beautiful bicycle! My brother-in-law actually built it from three seperate bikes. He used to work in a bike shop, so he's very talented in this. My neice helped him put on some stickers, so it was a real family effort.

The bike is just fantastic, as you can see in the picture above. I go zooming through the city streets, toiling up steep hills just so I can fly down them again. I'm getting to know the city in a whole new way as I explore new routes to my favourite stores and other places that I used to get to by walking. I love to feel the wind in my face, blowing my hair back. I love the sense of getting all that excersize. I love it that I can get to a place in minutes, whereas it used to take much longer when I had to walk. Now, if I need something from the store, I can combine that mundane act with the fun of bike riding. The bike came with a good lock, and I'm very careful to use it every time I have to leave the bike outside somewhere. I feel as though that bike and I are partners. When I come out again I always pat her seat.

My mom gave me the gift of a backpack. It's a beautful pack with a multitude of pockets. Perfect for carrying a few groceries, or my library books, or my camera gear ... actually that's another thing I'm really looking forward to - taking my bike out into the countryside to spend a day riding around and stopping to take photographs of old barns and cows. I haven't done it yet, somehow every time I've planned it, something thwarted my plan. But it will happen. I'll take a little bit of lunch, and a few other odds and ends that will make my day comfortable, and help me to fill my camera's memory card with great shots. I can't wait.

Happy Birthday To Me!