It's the Annual Birthday Blog!!!

Well, it’s happened once again!  I’ve managed to reach another birthday!  What does this mean?  Well, as some of you know, it’s time for my Annual Review.

For those of you who are new to this, I basically recap the last year of Uvonness, highlighting the ups, the downs, and the new and/or special experiences of my life.  I don’t bother doing these sorts of reflections at New Year’s, because that’s when everyone else is doing it, and I can’t get as much attention.  And after all,  I do march to the beat of my own tambourine..  Plus, this is partly a shameless plug to get some birthday wishes from you folks. 

Before starting off this year’s review, I thought it might be interesting to review where I was last year at this time.  When I turned 27, I was unemployed, single, terrified, and though I had a good group of friends, my outlook was bleak and my attitude bitter.  I am happy to report that things have changed significantly, and for the better, so I turn 28 in a much better mood.  Woohoo!  Now let’s get started…

Since June 2, 2005, I have:

• Gone to the beach (Lake Michigan) and taken my shirt off, marking the first time in about 14 years that my chest has been exposed to direct sunlight.
• Gotten sunburned for the first time in about 14 years.
• Passed out while standing on my own two feet (cabernet + slight dehydration), and fell flat on my face, smashing and scarring my nose.  Fortunately, my forehead hit the baseboard on the way down, so I didn’t break my nose.
• Re-entered the world of the employed by accepting a Receptionist position at a retirement community in Evanston.  It didn’t pay much, but I loved it.
• Discovered that a very dear friend had contracted HIV.  This was my first experience with someone close to me having the virus.
• Delivered a sermon for the first time.  It was quite well-received.
• Helped an unemployed friend get a job at the retirement community.
• Gone to Borders drunk.  To get my copy of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince at midnight.  According to my journal, I was also wearing sunglasses.
• Become “Mr. Apple Fritter” at the Dunkin’ Donuts where I used to stop almost daily on my way to work.
• Decided to use the word “hegemony” more often in polite conversation.  It has been less than successful.
• Met a Wonderful Man, with whom I could not pursue a relationship, on public transportation.
• Been monikered as The Voice of God.
• Attempted to decipher an acrostic in a Nabakov short story.  Failed.
• Been accepted into the Chicago Chamber Choir.  It’s exactly the kind of group I’ve been looking for since college, in size, quality, and repertoire.
• Vacuumed my “girlfriend’s” apartment.  This marks the first major act of housekeeping I’ve done for someone else.
• Had someone kindly buy a tux for me, since I needed one for Chamber Choir, but lacked the funds to purchase one.
• Left the job at the retirement home for a more lucrative one in downtown Chicago.
• Started having breakfasts on Fridays at Cereality.  Ridiculously good.
• Assumed the position of Financial Secretary at my church
• Took a blitzkrieg weekend flight to Florida, to play piano at my favorite cousin’s wedding.
• Informed my mother (Mother Tucker) that she was taking a vacation in the summer of 2006 to visit me in Chicago.  A trip that would be financed by me and my sister as a combination Mother’s Day/Birthday present.  She arrives on July 1.
• Found myself developing feelings for the Wonderful Man, despite the impossibility of any relationship beyond friendship.
• Gone to Springfield, Missouri, to surprise a good friend for his birthday.
• Attended a Northwestern football game.
• Gotten hooked on Sudoku.
• Allowed the former employer to steal me back from the downtown job.  
• Had a talk with the Wonderful Guy, in which we both discovered that we
  had stronger-than-appropriate feelings for one another, especially
  since we couldn't be together.
• Determined that it is not actually possible to be "dashing through
  the snow."  At least, not in snow boots.
• Ended the involvement with the Wonderful Guy.  It was a mutual (and
  mutually painful) decision, under the auspices of "It's the Right
  Thing to Do."
• Cried harder than I've cried since college.
• Cried at a movie.  Haven't done that since Summer 2001.
• Defined my Urban Tribe as Martha, Michelle, and Kent.  There are other
  people who hang out with the tribe quite a bit, and of whom I'm
  exceptionally fond, but I really feel like my core is those three.
• Received a subscriptioni to The New Yorker, which I love.
• Enjoyed the Second Annual Christmas Box at Martha's with local
  friends.
• Had an absolutely awful New Year's date.
• Went to a wine tasting for the first time.  This is now a monthly event
  for me and the Tribe.
• Accepted and wore a paper hat that some stranger (I suspect a college
  student) on the Red Line was making for everyone.
• Learned that stepping on bubble wrap when you're drunk will really
  freak you out!
• After six weeks of misery, had a chat with the Wonderful Man in which
  we both acknowledged that we weren't doing too well at "moving
  on."  Essentially, we picked up where we left off.
• Been compared to Norma Desmond (from Sunset Boulevard).
• Purchased a digital camera.
• Learned the chemical formula for lactose (C12H22O11 + H2O).  Yes, I'm
  a dork.
• Had dinner with my friend Laura at Ben Pao.  I hadn't seen her in
  nearly two years, so it was a great time to catch up.
• Consumed green beer on St. Patrick's Day.  Finally, Miller that looked the way it tasted!
• Started introducing the Wonderful Guy, hereafter known as Jerry, to my
  friends.  He fit in faster than a dead chicken in a maggot factory, and
  is now part of the Tribe.
• Seen a rug that reminded Jerry and me of Carol Channing.
• Helped Jerry move into a new apartment, conveniently located a block
  away from my place.
• Cooked dinner for Jerry.
• Started knitting an afghan
• Purchased an iPod, which I named Consuela.
• Tried a yoga class. 
• Determined that I don't really need to be that flexible.
• Determined that reading CNN.com and The Onion simultaneously is not a
  good idea.
• Received a Jane Austen action figure from Michelle for my birthday.
• Tried foie gras.  It was really good, so I'd prefer not to be
  reminded how it's made.
• Made plans to attend the Michigan Fiber Festival this year.  Jerry
  wants to see the alpacas; I want to buy lots of yarn.
• Highlighted my hair.  Nothing professional; just my friend Martha and a $5.99 box of blonde from Walgreen's.  I've received a lot of compliments.
• Read 24 novels.  Well below my goal for the year, but what can you do?  The ones that stood out:  Bastard Out of Carolina by Dorothy Allison, The Eyre Affair, Lost in a Good Book, The Well of Lost Plots, and Something Rotten, all by Jasper Fforde, and my favorite of the year, The Stone Diaries by Carol Shields.
  

Far and away, the most significant event of my life has been meeting Jerry, the Wonderful Man whom I now call my boyfriend.  It has been an amazing, spellbinding experience.  This is my first major relationship, so I don’t know if every day is supposed to feel this new and exciting, but I’m enjoying it, so no complaints.

On the whole, I think I’m happier with my life than I have been in quite a while.  I’ve got a job I enjoy, a boyfriend I love, outstanding friends, and an active social life.   How I’ve managed to keep it all together is a curiosity, but I intend to enjoy it for as long as I can.

Thank you for reading this.  Here’s to another great year of Uvony goodness!

All my best,

Uvon