There’s a song called “Birthday” that Katy Perry sings that they played every week in the spin class I used to attend last year. It’s a song about having a crap birthday but then Katy comes over and lets you do what anyone would want to do with Katy Perry to make up for it. This continues every day, reportedly. While I support this idea, my opinion of the song still stands: it’s very annoying, and in the middle where she sensually says Happy Birthday it’s just flat-out WEIRD. It doesn’t help that the first time I heard it, I thought it was our spin instructor that said it. Ol’ bread loaf quads just getting all sexy at 6am. No one is feeling sexy at 6am. Not in spin class or anywhere else. And that’s coming from a morning person.

So Wednesday was my 31st birthday. I had decided at 30 that birthdays weren’t something to be excited about anymore but since I’m new at this there was still a glimmer of excitement when the alarm went off at 4:45. I had requested to lead the Wednesday morning class at Title Boxing Club and not only had I put together a great Power Hour for my class but I’d spent the better part of a week working on a new workout playlist especially for the event – all rock and roll! Everyone responded very well to it and were still talking about it on Friday morning, in fact. Probably the most fun class I’ve lead so far – I’m really loving this new thing I’ve taken on. Once everyone left, I locked the door, turned the music up again, and added a 30-minute weight lifting session with additional rounds on the speed bag and newly-installed double-ended bag. By the time I got to work at 8:30, we were off to a good start.

The work day was a disappointment for various reasons not worth blogging about but I was already starting to lose that birthday excitement that I shouldn’t have gotten in the first place. Evening activities included getting a haircut, which is actually one of my favorite things, and ordering pizza delivery while I busied myself baking two apple cakes to go along with some goodie baskets I’m making for some folks this year. Each basket is different but the first two includes apple cake, pumpkin butter, cherry-infused bourbon, and blueberry bbq sauce. It was actually work putting those cakes together and I overcooked one, but baking – especially for other people – is something I love doing.

With that said, my birthday wasn’t what I was hoping for, entirely, and there was no Katy Perry or birthday cake, but I’d say it was a success as much as a birthday can be considered one. Erin bought me a GoPro Hero4 Silver and a whole slew of connectors and attachments that I’m very excited about, though I haven’t had the opportunity to really play around with it. My first attempt was a bust as I strapped the camera to my head and proceeded to cook a sweet potato and pork hash because I don’t know what I’m doing and the camera’s angle was showing mostly the bottom of my beard and my chest. I’m including the only thing useable from the entire attempt: the presentation shot of the dinner!

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Pre-birthday weekend was pretty cool – browsing around the holiday market downtown, meeting some friends out for dinner and beer for before hockey, and then actual hockey! Can’t beat any of that but then they did as someone in my group arranged to have the Ice Bears Hunnies (basically the team’s dancers) cheer happy birthday for me after bringing a card they had all signed. They did it because they were asked to, but I’m going to choose to believe they did it because they hear me cheer for them at every home game!

Anyway, I snapped a few photos that day/night. About 90% of them had to hit the bin as I struggled to get the exposure just right in the coliseum and had a hard time with focus from such an odd distance.

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I did get a taxidermied skunk at work yesterday. I intend to give the guy his own post after I get some better photos of him.

One last project I’ve taken on here before Christmas is painting a skateboard for my friend’s son, Evan, who asked for a skateboard with his name on it for Christmas. Citing my previous graffiti style artwork, I apparently came to mind as the guy to handle the project and I’m glad I was because it’s been pretty fun getting the stencils and spray paint out again. Next, he’s putting some clear coat on it and then having it assembled with custom trucks, bearings, and wheels that will match my color palette! Dig it!

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I guess that leaves my weekly running and it’s going to be short and sweet as my total for the week was 0 miles. I mentioned last week that I had sort-of hurt my right foot. I was sure it would just go away after a good night’s rest but it didn’t. Not even after two nights – not even three nights – not even four nights. Yesterday was the first day it didn’t give me any trouble and today it’s been just fine, too, but I’ve been wearing some slip-on shoes because they don’t seem to aggravate it the way my tennis shoes do. I’m hoping it’s actually nothing and I’ve just given it enough time to fix itself.

I’m a week out of running and I’m already angry about it. Funny how that works – when I’m healthy enough to run I often think of excuses to skip but when I physically can’t run it’s one of the few things I actually really want to do. I think it’s a typical “runner” thing, too, to struggle in admitting you’re hurt and need to take time off. I hate it.

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So here’s to the past 31 years and here’s another for year 32. Don’t get hurt, don’t get fat.