Happy Easter & Happy Birthday to Me!

These pics were taken on my birthday...please don't mind the tired look on my face. I had an awesome 31st birthday nonetheless.

Ok, so I admit it. I'm afraid of fireworks...even little sparklers.

Pecan pie anyone?

Mom & I

Oh well, no pictures of MoJo & I though. :(

30!

hey hey hey! what's haPPenin'???

30 is here and i feel so LiBerATEd from the shackles of my 20s. let's see. the positive: i traveled the country for free, i met amazing new people, i lived in two other places besides NYC, i truly became financially independent from the 'rents. the negatives: the quarter-life crisis, the uncertainty of life, the constant self-questioning, the depressingly low salary, the people pleasing. UGH. i'm tired of it. none of that shitake ANYMORE! i'm older and i demand respect dammit! so if you thought i was outspoken before, wait till you hear me now!

i've been lookin' forward to 30. seems like i'm the only one of my friends that's not freaked out by it. i'm happy and grateful for all the beautiful life blessings i have. so many amazing things are going to happen in this decade; how can i NOT look forward to it???

a beautiful surprise birthday dinner was planned by a scheming duo: j & mom. i never thought mom had it in her. but she surprised me. and the fact that she and j worked together, shocked me even more. yet i felt sooooooooo loved. later, a part-ay! check out photos on flickr.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ME!!!

Happy Birthday Mom!

Mom turned another year older today! Here she is blowing out her candles surrounded by lovely roses and some cards and a check from me. Ha!











Of course, there has to be one with the two of us!

Happy Birthday Mom!

Happy 30th Birthday L!

Here's one of my best friends celebrating her 30th. Her husband, The Chemist, plus 12 close friends celebrated L's (aka "Goober") birthday in elegant style at a Boston lounge and restaurant. With the exception of her elder sister who could not attend, the other four women in her bridal party were there. So we're talkin' just close friends folks.

To the left, you'll see Goober shimmy-ing in one of her gifts, a new blue bathrobe. Doesn't she just look ssssexxy in that bad boy!?!? The Chemist seems to thinks so.

On the right is the birthday gal between me and The Artistic One, who is donning her typical laugh-out-loud-laugh. Don't we look awesome for a bunch of 30-year-olds?

Hey wait, I'm not 30 yet! Haaa!!! I'm the baby in this pic...

Last hurrah at the Beer Garden

It was a big birthday for MoJo and since we were in California on his actual birthday spending time with MY family, the NY celebration got postponed to this weekend.

Here's the group at the Bohemian Beer Garden. A nice crowd came to celebrate, including his two brothers (can you see them standing in the back??). I suppose since the majority of these folks are engineers I found myself to be one of the three women in the group. *sigh* Such a male dominated profession... Anyway! Joe's friends are a great group of people and are all characters in their own special way. Several pitchers of beer and plates of kielbasa were consumed with a round or two of Uno played!

MoJo's friends and couple, El Biólogo & La Ingeniera recently took a trip to Peru and brought back a gift for him. It was an Andean hat!!! And apparently, El Biólogo & La Ingeniera say that it's not just any Andean hat, it's the one especially reserved for el jefe, the boss. Doesn't he look maniacal?? I'm just thrilled because I have a more colorful Andean hat that I got from Peru two years ago so I can't wait to walk down the street together and match (somewhat)!!!

My intention was to have a cake at the Beer Garden but apparently no outside food is allowed. So they confiscated my chocolate cake for several hours until we were left. Thankfully, MoJo lived nearby so the party moved over to his apartment where a nice rendition of happy birthday was sung and cake was sliced. We even took in an episode of the Simpsons. En route to his apartment, you'll see the only low point of the evening for MoJo. I'm not sure if he is scared of the dark or if his helium ballons were blowing too hard in the wind but he doesn't look so happy in this picture. Aaaaaww!

A lively poker game ensued after candle blowing. MoJo won the largest portion of the pot. Hooray!! Happy birthday honey!!!

Fr. S's Birthday

Celebrated Fr. S's birthday today with friends. I took this action shot -- doesn't it speak volumes to the fun we had?!?!?

My mom & I got to know Fr. S back in 1993 when he served as a priest in our former parish. Even though my mom and I were always close, we had our rough patches especially during my teenage years when I challenged her and exerted my sense of independence all the time. It's the normal stuff we all go through as teenagers with our parents. Anyway, Fr. S met us at that point and because of his warmth and vivacious personality, we developed a friendship with him and let him into our lives. He was so helpful to me & my mom as we went through our typical growing pains! He kept reminding me to be loving and patient with my mom and he kept reminding my mom to let me go.

When he returned to Nigeria in 1996, we lost touch (back then, email was a brand new concept) although I had an snail address for him. Our daily lives were just so full that there simply was no more time to write. Mom and I never knew what happened to one of our favorite priests.

Then last September, our pastor announced a new priest in our parish. Mom and I couldn't believe what we were hearing!! The very same Fr. S who we loved and last saw 9 years ago was back in our midst again?!?!?! He had been in the borough for several years and was recently transfered to our church. We had no idea!!! When we surprised him with a visit to the rectory after Mass, the three of us were completely overwhelmed with joy at the reunion. The look on Fr. S's face, upon recognizing old friends re-entering his life, was so indescrible that I can only say it looked like a perfect Kodak moment. We hugged, laughed, cried, and relayed milestone events from the past 9 years. The joy I felt was truly incredible: I don't think I've ever felt it before. It was not connected to material wealth or accomplishment; it was simply because it came from love.

I believe that nothing in life is serendipitious. God brought us together, separated us, and brought us back together for a reason although such reasons may not be revealed to us at that very moment or even ever. But I take these beautiful moments with humility and gratitude.

Mom and I have opened our hearts to him and welcomed him into our family especially since he does not have any here. And I know he has done the same for us. We love you Fr. S! Thank you for being a wonderful friend and spiritual advisor to us! May God continue to bless you on your birthday and always. We thank God for bringing you into the world, for the special gifts He bestowed upon you, and for the light you bring to our lives. Happy Birthday!!!

Almost there...the big 2-9!!!!

Happy Birthday to me. It's the last year of living in my 20s.

Overall, I feel very good and I am happy about turning 29. No major crisis, no freak-outs. I am at peace with my wonderful age and the wisdom I have acquired thus far in life. Looking back on the eve of a new decade, I thankfully, have no regrets. I have taken incredible risks that reaped amazing rewards.

I've learned that:

• Life is a gift. Remain open in mind and spirit because life is full of surprises and every challenge may be seen as an opportunity.
• The journeys in life are more important than reaching the intended destinations.
• Seeking out mentors who can act as guides and role models are necessary for success.
• Happiness is not a goal, it's an attitude.

My birthday was full of love -- so many people called or emailed or sent birthday greetings. I felt so loved by everyone. Two colleagues bought me tulips and MoJo surprised me by stopping by in the late morning to drop off a calla lily plant (calla lilies are my favorite flowers!). He told me that he had no idea what a calla lily looked like so he had to look it up online. In spite of his lack of knowledge, he cheerfully said, "See, I listen!" He decided to buy me a plant so that it would last longer than just the flower -- so practical is he! I felt like the luckiest girl in the planet!

My co-workers took me out to lunch and then in the evening, MoJo took me to one of my favorite restaurants in the city, The Blue Water Grill. There, I indulged in half a dozen oysters, wine, and a wonderful organic Scottish salmon that was to die for! A jazz trio played while we dined in candlelight. All in all, a wonderful birthday!

A very HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my maternal grandmother, DD, who celebrates her birthday today, April 7, with me. She turns 98! May God bless her!!!

Happy Birthday Gmail!

What to my surprise when I open my gmail account this morning, I discover that Gmail is celebrating its 1st birthday. According to the site, they are going to "roll-out our new and top secret Infinity+1 storage plan" along with a corresponding graph.

Now I'm not a techie so I have no clue what that all means. But I do know one thing. Gmail is adding ONE MORE GIGABYTE to our mail storage for A TOTAL OF 2G!!!! Wahoo!!! How pathetic was I when I fretted that I would run out of storage space when I only had 1G. I should've know these Gmail folks would be ahead of the curve.

Hooray! Happy Birthday Gmail!!!