Thank you all.

It's always nice to have someone mention my birthday, seeing as it comes at the time of year when my friends are out of town, school is out, and my family is preoccupied with Christmas. The fact that half of my family was born within 2 weeks of my birthday doesn't help either.

But, I'll save that rant for the shrinks, and just say that I actually had a nice quiet birthday consisting of taking a much needed break from the (admittedly fun) chaos that is my life, and used the opportunity to have long conversations with close friends who are far away.