At least this year I get to have a semi-normal birthday (no cake though, I can live without that). I'm just going to relax at home and maybe have a couple drinks with a friend. My wife bought me the best birthday presents (even if they arrived early). Jia gave me a talking Homer Simpson and warm slippers with Colonel Homer on them. Plus, she also got me two new Chinese books that will hopefully help me learn a bit more (although that means I need to get back into a routine of studying).
Compare this to my last two birthdays in China and you can see why I'm much happier. Last year I was miserable at work--I seem to recall giving most of my classes tests just to keep them quiet for the day. The year before I was still getting used to my first three weeks in China and still didn't have a working phone due to the employer being too stupid to realize that they hadn't paid the bill and the number had been disconnected. I also never received my birthday card from my parents that year (it's somewhere in China Post's lost file center).
Anyway, happy birthday to me. This year is a whole lot better than the last two. And the sun is calling me outside to lunch.
Edit: I got another birthday gift today while at work. I received an e-mail from an editor asking where to send my free contributor copy of Asia's Best Hotels and Resorts. I was getting worried about that one--I wrote for them back in March, got paid in April, and heard nothing about the publication until now. But I'll have to wait until February to see it since I'm having it mailed to my parents.
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