So yes, happy birthday to me.

It's funny... last night as we were going to bed, Jen asked me what I did for my 17th birthday (since my birthday is on the 17th). It just so happens that, for my 17th birthday, I attempted to have a birthday party. I handed out invitations to just about everyone I thought might come--25 or 30 people in all, something like that. My parents made a big pot of chili for dinner and then stayed out of the way.

3 people showed up. Cris, Tammy, and Jay. Story of my [high-school] life.

Naturally, that led into a discussion of other bad birthdays (such as the one where I finally realized that two people I had been really close to were completely out of touch with me and didn't seem to really care), bad gifts, etc. It struck me again that my birthdays are very seldom particularly worth remembering. Actually, the last two birthdays I had were probably the best since my childhood; I'm a low-key person, but I like going out with a group of friends on my birthday. St. Louis was pretty good that way.

Anyway, to shake off the maudlin thoughts, I've had several phone calls and an e-mail already today, I have a pot rack* coming in the mail, and I'll get to hang out with people and open presents over Thanksgiving. (It's interesting, sometimes, how much like my father I continue to become. Dad always got his presents at Thanksgiving because his birthday is the 29th...) And life in Austin is pretty good, so I'm looking forward to spending year 26 here.

* My birthday present from Jen. I will be so glad to get those pots and pans out of the cupboard.

Finally got around to snapping a couple shots of Riley and uploading them to the gallery.

Ignore the background, it's only our still-hugely-messy office.

So yes, I started my new job this week. I spent Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday in Phoenix, working at a very posh private hangar, so the week went by pretty quickly. I think I'm going to be spending a lot of time in Phoenix for the next few months, so mid-week updates may be rare for a while. Anyway, the work--while intense--seems like it will be a lot of fun, and I'm getting along pretty well with all my new coworkers (a must in a ten-person company).

Jen and I have a plan for the landscaping around the house, which I'm sure will keep us busy for any number of weekends once we get started. Being a homeowner is certainly interesting; mowing the lawn is a lot less annoying when it's your lawn, at least so far. Maybe that will change after a few years, who knows.

Jenny and I saw Lost In Translation last night. It was good, but not quite as good as the reviews ("Bill Murray's best movie ever" etc) had led me to believe. Worth a viewing, though.