Today is My Birthday

I have spent the past two days at my first-ever Chinese academic conference, which deserves its own post. I'll get on that tomorrow. As you might imagine, there's a lot of whining I could do at this moment if I were of a mind to. Let's just stay it will not go down on the list of especially stellar birthdays. But my birthday has always been at a difficult time of year, the post-Thanksgiving slump, exam time during high school, usually cold and dreary and busy.

On the other hand, after spending all those hours in a hotel, in a high state of tension, my apartment really feels like a home. And I know I have a present or two in the mail coming soon--possibly even today and I missed it by not being here; I'll check for a package slip tomorrow. My room is warm. My fellow gave me a sweet digital present, and in just two weeks will be here in the flesh. I have half a lemon and much vitamin C to help me nurse the cold I've caught. I have a lot of different things to give to LGs when I see him tomorrow afternoon. And I don't even have to get up before dawn tomorrow (I was starting to get used to it).

I'm a year older, and I can say without hesitation that it has been an incredibly eventful year, a year where I made progress in ever so many ways. Not especially comfortable--rarely if ever comfortable!--but I've done lots of growing. I do feel kinda old. Mao Zedong and I overlapped in the world, albeit not by much. That's something I have over Chinese kids today, ha ha.

Anyway, the above pictures are from the beautiful garden attached to the fancy hotel where I've been. I have many more, which I will post tomorrow together with an as-candid-as-I-dare account of the event itself. 'Til then...