Transitions, Ink

Sunday, September 24, 2006

Sunday Scribblings #26: Instructions

I decided that whatever this week's Sunday Scribblings prompt was, I would try to make it birthday-appropriate.


How to Celebrate Your 42nd Birthday


1. Tell someone who cares that you would love some fresh cut flowers, and that they need to include fig-coloured cala lillies. (Thanks, Honey!)
2. Declare that you will not be cooking today. After all, it's your birthday. You should be served.
3. Start the celebration a few days early, being sure to include your favourite food. In my case, this meant french fries on Friday night.
4. Buy yourself a flat of fresh figs, to be intermittently eaten and admired for the next few days.
5. Set aside a huge chunk of the day for uninterrupted writing - the fun kind, not the stressful kind. That can wait.
6. Meditate in the morning.
7. Add something healthy to your routine. I need to do some cardio. Today, I'll add 20-30 minutes on the cross-trainer before I do yoga.
8. Appreciate the weather if it's good; ignore it if it's bad.
9. Take the time to read other people's instructions and leave them comments.
10. Browse a knitting book and decide on a pattern for the new shawl project.
11. Don't be upset about the paucity of cards this year. The older you get, the less they remember and the less you remind them.
12. Older folks always say that the forties were their best years. Remember that throughout the day.
13. Don't do the laundry, plant the bulbs, or deal with any unopened mail.
14. Admire your surroundings.
15. Go out for dinner and then to see Looking for Angelina, the true story of Angelina Napolitano, who was sentenced to death for murdering her husband with an axe as he slept on Easter Sunday, 1911, in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario.
16. Remember your commitment to aging gracefully.

18 comments:

Idiot Cook said...

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, TI!!! I've been bad about posting lately, so I'm glad I stopped by today.

I LOVE your self instructions...they're ones we can all learn from.

Have a wonderful, wonderful day and year ahead.

Peace.
FC

Idiot Cook said...

BTW--Have you seen "Little Miss Sunshine," and if yes, what did you think of it? I just saw it-- really enjoyed it.

TI said...

Thanks for the b-day wishes, FC. It's great to have you back! No haven't seen LMS yet, but it's on my list. Smaller city: takes things a little longer to get here unless they're smack dab in the middle of the mainstream.

Anonymous said...

Happy Birthday! And thanks for stopping by my blog.

Good instruction for your special day. Hope you get everything you want and more!

Susannah Conway said...

Hey birthday girl, thanks for your kind comment you left me - i'm loving this post (and now i want to eat a plate of figs - surely the most divine fruit on earth :-)
x

ps. love the pooh bear stickers!

Miss Robyn said...

first of all Happy Birthday!
this was a great idea for the instructions prompt ~ I actually might print these out, modify them to suit me & stick them in my journal for my birtday each year! great idea! ~ I love figs - not to eat but to look at ~ there is something so earth about them. And pomegranates too.
thanks for visiting & commenting on my blog too!

paris parfait said...

Great "instructions" for your special day! Wonderful flowers! Hope you have a fantastic birthday, with some nice surprises. I am a fig fan too.

Anonymous said...

Happy birthday! Here's to aging gracefully.

Anonymous said...

Happy Birthday!! With these instructions you're guaranteed to have a great day!

Writer Bug said...

Happy Birthday TI! It's been great getting to know you these past few months! I hope you had a fabulous day, and have a fabulous year!

TI said...

Thanks for stopping by, everyone, and thanks for the birthday wishes!

sophie said...

Happy Birtday and I loved your
delightful post - also the
picture was gorgeous.
Such a wonderful color:)

smiles!

Verity said...

Wise words and happy birthday!

Tammy Brierly said...

WOW! Mini twins :) Happy Birthday and I loved your instructions :) May we meet again!

Repeater said...

Hey ti-
Happy Birthday, I missed it being off-line for a couple of days. It's a great list, and as my birthday's coming up soon, I'm going to take your advice on some of the activities- Hope it was as wonderful a day as you planned! You are most definitely aging gracefully (remember the stranger who asked if you were a model in Cambridge??)

TI said...

Repeater, you must be thinking of someone else. For sure no one thought I was a model. One of the instructors said they thought I was a "cosmetician" or something like that. FC can vouch for it; she was there.

Repeater said...

Oh, no, none of that- it was you alright- it was the last day and we were on the way to the bookstore, and a stranger asked you if you were a model--I remember because I was envious.

TI said...

Funny how I've blanked on that one. I'll take your word for it and feel good about it. Thanks.