It's my birthday tomorrow and for the first time ever my thoughts are a bit mixed. I love birthdays and don't think I'll ever want to stop celebrating them. I don't subscribe to the idea that getting older is a bad thing, in fact I think it's ridiculous. My birthday has always been a little bit of a let down since I left tiny childhood however. With it falling so close to Christmas I always fell into that danger period where I was offered the choice of a bigger present combining the 2 celebrations if I wanted. Invariably this means getting that present at Christmas so your birthday is a bit sparse. As I got older I discovered that my birthday falls between the payday before Christmas and the next one for most people. So everyone is skint and all partied out by the time my birthday comes around.
For my 3 years at university my birthday was great. It fell after we had all returned for the second term and all our loan cheques had cleared by that point so we all had money. Plus at uni all my friends were up for whatever crazy fancy dress scheme we could come up with.
Now I have a different dilemma. What do you do for presents when you now live in a way that means you don't want new or useless stuff? I don't feel I can ask for anything that is a true frippery anymore when there is more important stuff. Things like jewellery are pointless as I never go anywhere to wear the nice pieces I already own. I make clothes now. I have no interest in the latest CD/DVD/computer game. So what do I want? I've asked Spadger to get me some notions. Things like zips and thread and stuff like that. For all the ideas I have for sewing I never seem to have the "bits and pieces". Not the most exciting present but one I will actually use. This should help me transform my gigantic fabric stash into useful stuff.
I think presents are the last real hurdle between me and a truly frugal, "simple" life. I love opening gifts and really like it when people have put thought into it (see my glee over tea towels this Christmas hehehe). But when you have decided that you don't need anything it doesn't always mean that you have stopped wanting stuff. I think Birthdays may always be the time when I want to fall off the lack of consumption wagon.
So the plan for this birthday is simple. The local alternative night actually falls on my birthday this year with it being a Saturday so we're going out for a dance. I finally get to wear my corset out! A good nights dancing after a day spent in fabric shops seems like a great day to me :o)
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I think that sounds like a really lovely present to receive.
ReplyDeleteHave fun on Saturday! Happy Birthday :)