It's all about me! Or if it isn't, how it CAN be.
It's my coworker Thomas' birthday today. I mean, I know mine was only two days ago, but the 25th? Yowch. I have another coworker, Pat, who's birthday was yesterday, too. And my office-mate, Andrea, had a birthday on the 20th. That's definitely the first time I've known of that many Christmas-time birthdays in any workplace. We had a cake on Wednesday for Andrea and two cakes on Thursday (most folks were due to be out on Friday) for me, Pat, and Thomas. Complete with singing birthday candle.
A lot of people ask about the whole "do you only get one present for both" thing, and the whole "do people wish you happy birthday and merry christmas" thing, and the answers I give are probably pretty much the same as anyone else you've ever known with a Christmas-time birthday. So instead I thought I'd offer some tips on how to properly celebrate MY birthday. 'Cause you know you want something else to celebrate at the end of December every year.
How To Celebrate Kate's Birthday
By now, if you've followed my instructions, you've had a pretty good celebration of my birthday. I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did!
Thanks to everyone who wished me a happy day. It worked!
A lot of people ask about the whole "do you only get one present for both" thing, and the whole "do people wish you happy birthday and merry christmas" thing, and the answers I give are probably pretty much the same as anyone else you've ever known with a Christmas-time birthday. So instead I thought I'd offer some tips on how to properly celebrate MY birthday. 'Cause you know you want something else to celebrate at the end of December every year.
How To Celebrate Kate's Birthday
- It is important that you begin the day with a good cup of coffee and something wonderful to eat. French toast is always fun (even if it veers from the nearly vegan diet I strive to keep) but a more authentic French breakfast is even better. I'm talking about croissants, people, and only the best. We're lucky enough to have a locally-owned French-style bakery and cafe called Provence -- we go to the one at the main library downtown all the time (it's a pleasant 20ish minute walk from our house) but since we had to do our grocery shopping for the party, we chose their original and larger location in the hip Hillsboro Village neighborhood. I had a fabulous croissant, a bowl of fresh fruit, and some wonderful Dancing Goats coffee. Try it, you'll love it!
- Optional: go wander through a good grocery store. Seriously, I love natural/whole foods stores. Hell, I just love thinking about food at all. We chose Wild Oats -- if you have a Whole Foods or an independent store or a co-op near you, that'll work, too. (We also ran into one of our neighbors (we're talking about a store that's clear across town from our neighborhood, but that's how much demand there is for an upscale/natural market in or around our area -- investors take note!) and found out that he was planning to attend the party after going to the Predators game, so we ended up having a hilarious conversation about hockey and fang fingers and throwing various dead animals into the ice rink. Hockey is weird.)
- Have something really tasty and indulgent for lunch. We chose the locally-owned Couva Calypso Cafe for their famous "loaded black bean nachos" and fruit tea, yum.
- Thrift shopping is practically a must. We chose Goodwill. Pick your favorite. It is, of course, one of my favorite things to do ever.
- Bake something. I chose to make gingerbread cupcakes with cream cheese frosting, and I decorated each one with a variety of festive sprinkles. All vegan, and quite yummy.
- Take a romantic shower with the love of your life. Try not to run out of hot water.
- This is important! Don't skip dinner. You'll be drinking a lot. I planned to eat later, but was always too distracted to eat much during the party. Big mistake.
- Open a bottle of Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin (my favorite champagne!) and make a toast with the love of your life. It doesn't much matter what you say, but it must be heartfelt and in the moment. I believe mine was something like "To you and your patience with my indulgences."
- Throw a party. You should probably start planning this ahead of the actual day. Be aware that but a tiny fraction of the number of people you invite will be able to make it, and even some of the people who say they're coming won't or can't -- at this time of year, just seems like people just never know what's going to be happening at the last minute, and it's just as likely some will get sick right before the party. That's to be expected. Still, it's good to have WAY more food and drinks than you need, and you'll do just fine with, oh, say, the 27 people who do show up (out of probably 127 invitations). In our case, Aunt B and the Butcher were arriving just as a group of neighborhood carolers were standing at the bottom of our front stairs singing "We Wish You A Merry Christmas" and then "Happy Birthday." It was a very nice touch, but probably not a necessary ingredient for your own party.
- Write a song. Actually, I didn't get around to it this year because of all the running around, but it's been a fairly consistent tradition since I was a teenager.
- Visit kittens at the animal shelter. Again, I didn't get a chance this year, but this is always a fun thing to do, and kittens are just right for birthdays.
- Live-blog the birthday celebration. I wasn't up for it, but you might be!
- Volunteer where you're needed. Since it is, after all, the Christmas season, there is always a need. One year I helped out at a food pantry, sorting cans and other food into batches for distribution. That was fun, and it felt good. Maybe next year we can do toys or something fun like that.
Other ideas if you have time:
By now, if you've followed my instructions, you've had a pretty good celebration of my birthday. I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did!
Thanks to everyone who wished me a happy day. It worked!
