36 and Counting...

So it is my birthday weekend; I am 36 years old this year.

I know I say this all the time, but I genuinely feel that I lead a charmed existence. Since leaving the airlines a few years ago, I feel like I have found my niche in life. Even though my work can be a bit annoying or stressful at times, it suits me. I like working non-traditional hours and I have always greatly enjoyed working in general. (Check out that good Christian work ethic, who would have thunk?) My job offers me plenty of overtime and this is allowing me to buy a condo and take trips when I want to. I still have these lingering doubts that everything is going to come crashing down one day, but I suppose that is just my suspicious nature.

I tend to be something of a news junkie, watching Morning Joe in the mornings at work and DVR'ing Charlie Rose as well as hitting various news sites on the Internet throughout the day. So when the news drones on and on about people out of work, the health care debate, global warming, terrorism, and the like, it becomes a bit hard to separate one's self from the hype; everything is "fast breaking" and "hard hitting". When I give these ideas thought, neither of these concepts are in step with the pace of my life. I am neither fast breaking nor hard hitting; I prefer a slower and lazy pace of life. So this level of frenetic discourse probably does not help me to relax about stuff. It is an interesting self-observation, now that I have put it down on screen. *Note to self.

I am headed north today with a couple of girlfriends on an overnight to Mendocino. We are going to hang out, have a low key overnight at a hotel on the beach, and then hit some wineries and outlets on the way home tomorrow. I had a lovely Friday evening with a new friend and then spent Saturday evening with my friends Brian and Alex at a Brazilian steakhouse where waiters circled with hunks of drizzling meat. Good times were had by all.

This month is going to be a busy one for me. I have a bunch of people to touch base with, so I am going to be on the road a bit on days off with trips to Seattle, Vegas, and possibly Denver and Phoenix. So much to do, so little time. Facebook and the Internet are great for keeping up with people, but there is nothing better than chilling with the ones you love. So off off I go.

I am taking a couple of classes online, both required subjects, Literature and Critical Thinking. Thus far, Literature is proving to be a breeze. Critical Thinking is a philosophy course and it is one of those courses that I dread. Just logging on to the website fills me with loathing, but there it is. My reluctance is based upon my thorough lack of interest in a lot of the material (dissecting exactly why a statement or argument is true or false or logical) coupled with a large amount of writing to exacting standards. One of my strengths tends to be punching up other people's writing. For example, several people at work always have me proofread their e-mails or professional documents and I will edit or add to their work as needed. So this week's critical thinking assignment was to rewrite a poorly written sample letter to a potential employer. I was fairly confident about this assignment, but the professor was not a fan in his response to me. He gave me an 8 out of a 20! What is wildly funny is that all of the work I have turned in thus far has been total crap in my opinion and he has given me perfect marks. So the total lack of any read on this class and this professor have me a little spooked. No matter, I keep telling myself it will be over in a few months. The pitfalls of being a perfectionist.

Beyond that, I remain so eternally grateful for all that I have experienced in these first thirty five years. I am hooked on Shutterfly and had a couple photo books made that now proudly occupy my coffee table. When I flip through the pages of my life (literally), it is so cool to see what a journey it has been so far. From climbing pyramids to scuba diving, from flying to remote corners of the globe to hanging out in Dolores Park, and from sunny days to foggy nights, I have such fond and distinct memories of everything. Thank you to all of you for being such great and supportive friends and family. If the first thirty five years are any indication, the next thirty five are going to be incredible.

Gracias por todo amigos y hermanos. Cuidate.