I have to write to tell you all that I'm 30 now. 30! People keep asking me if I feel any different or if I freaked out beforehand, or they try to give me advice on how to deal, but the truth is that I'm loving it so far. I was ready to put my twenties (a very tumultuous, and often unsettling, decade in pretty much every area of my life) to rest, so symbolically this birthday meant something more to me than a change in number. Stepping into my thirties put the final touch on a new sense of peace and well being I had slowly grown into during my late twenties. I'm way happier and okay with life now than I was at, say, 24, and that is a very good thing. Plus, I've always just liked the sound of 30.

Of course, I have moments when I'm driving along or typing an email at work and I suddenly think "Gah! I'm 30! How did this happen?!?" But, the weirdness of that realization is fleeting. Of course, there are some things I wouldn't have expected to be doing at this age. For instance, busting into the running man dance while walking up a hill with friends on our way home after a show is not the kind of behavior I envisioned for myself at 30. Em and I writing out games of MASH with a purple pen on paper napkins, while having drinks and sharing french fries at the Pacific Inn on a weeknight, is something else I could not have foreseen. ("OK...you're going to marry the Yorn, live in a shack, have 8 kids, work as a fry cook, have a pet goat, and drive a beat-up minivan. Yessssss! The perfect life!") We had brought playing cards but couldn't remember the rules to Go Fish, and I kept beating her at Crazy 8's, so MASH it was.

My sisters and Trav came to Seattle for the birthday, which was already very special to me. Then, my friends (thank you, Elizabeth) and sisters threw me a surprise dinner party at one of my favorite restaurants, the 35th Street Bistro. It was a great night full of delicious food, fun conversation, and excellent presents. I'm overwhelmed by all the ways the amazing people in my life have made this time so memorable for me.

Em, who knows how to select gifts for the single girl, went with a theme --virtues and vices--for my present. That meant I got an assortment of wholesome items such as relaxation tea, bath salts, good smelling lotion, and a book on natural health and beauty, as well as a Babeland gift set full of naughties and a romance novel. My kind of present in every way. The most exciting part of the Babeland gift is that it included something I've wanted for a long time. It's a little keychain/flashlight/"massager" device. We had seen this while in the Babeland store last year and found its hidden promise intriguing. Although, one drawback I discovered upon opening is that there is only one setting. You either get vibrate and light or nothing at all. I guess the website claims the flashlight part is for warming purposes. Hmmmm. It's also kind of loud. Still, I was enthusiastic when I showed it to my sister, Molly, after getting home.

Me: "Mols, check this out!"

Molly (with mild disgust): "Megan R! Why would someone use that?

Me: "It travels well. It looks like an innocent flashlight key chain, but it's actually good times on the go."

Molly (thoughtfully): "I guess you could take it camping..."

Me: "Camping!?! Yeah. That would work out. No one would be able to tell what's going on. Tents all lined up closely on campsite. Dead silence of night broken by loud wrrrrrrrrrrrrrr. Peeps asking each other, 'What's that?'"

Em: "Just say it's a mosquito."

(enter giggles)

Me: "A mosquito. Try a swarm of mosquitoes."

Mols: "Oh, there would be other questions. Like, 'Why is there a light in your pants?'"

More giggling ensues over potential campsite scenario. Is possible I may not be able to handle the flashlight device.

I miss blogging, you guys. Last Sunday I took a really good fall outside of Emily's apartment, and no one but Molly and Trav saw it, so I must tell. After stopping by to say hi to Em, we were headed down to the Fremont market, and my foot caught on the step outside her door. I *thought* I was going to catch myself, but I didn't. Instead, I crashed sloppily into the wood fence directly in front of the step and then just sat down on the pavement. Mols and Trav were waiting in the yard about 10 feet away, and they stared at me for a moment before Trav cruised over to make sure Sniffy (his blanket) and I were okay. He gave me the now frequent "Auntie, you're crazy!" look and toddled off. I was totally unharmed, and Molly and I laughed until we cried.

"This is a woman. Goodbye."