Turning 30 isn't so bad

On Saturday, I turned 30. Horray for me. Kristin, of course, had no intention of letting such a milestone pass by unnoticed. I knew that she was up to something, and knowing how big of a deal birthdays are to her, I knew that she would do something impressive, but she still managed to shock the hell out of me. I got guilted into going to a camper store with my Dad on saturday, so I knew that something was up. I had figured that when I got back, that I'd see Lance and Phaedra's Grand Am in the yard, and I was looking forward to finally showing them our house and showing Lance some of the crap that I've been working on that I knew he would be interested in. After all, it's not too often that there's somebody at my house that actually gives a damn about all my cars and my speakers. When my father and I pulled up to the house, instead of seeing Lance & Phaedra's car, I saw about 15 cars (including theirs), some of which I didn't even recognize. After I got the car parked, I went up to the house and couldn't believe what I saw. In the house were 30+ people, all there to celebrate my newfound oldness. What was even more amazing is that Kristin managed to assemble a group of people that consisted of a few friends that I hadn't seen or even spoken to in a number of years. My very good friend Liz, who I don't think I've even seen or talked to since she got married a few years ago was there with her husband and their adorable (and exceptionally well behaved) 2 1/2 year old son. Michelle, who I've only seen a couple times since Liz's wedding, was also there with her new boyfriend, who appears to be a MUCH nicer guy than her old boyfriend. Matt and Nicole were also there. Though they just recently moved into a house a half mile from us, used to live an hour away and I haven't seen them nearly as much as I should have over the last few years. Kristin also invited my buddy Todd from near Rutland, but unfortunately he has a sick kid so he wasn't able to come down. Hopefully his kid is feeling better now. Aside from those people who I don't often see, almost all of my regular friends and family were there to wish me well. It's really overwhelming when you see this many close friends and family together, because you don't realize just how many people there are that care about you until you put them all into your dining room!

What was even more overwhelming though, was Kristin. The minute I walked into the door, it was obvious that she put a tremendous amount of time and effort into making sure this party was absolutely perfect. For her to work so hard at doing this for me really means the world to me. It's just one more reminder that I'm damned lucky to have her, and that it's a good thing I put that ring on her hand before she found somebody else to do it!

Just incase any of you are actually reading this (Hi Jill!!), I want to thank all of you for participating, and sharing my old-man day with me. This old man feels very much alive!