My friends spoil me. Terribly. Tomorrow is my birthday, and since I've taken the next two days off work, my officemates decorated my cubicle and brought cards, gifts, cake (chocolate, of course) and ice cream (4 kinds!) today. Knowing my love of sci-fi, Skeeter found a pinata in the shape of a flying saucer to hover over my personal air space. There's also Star Wars crepe paper, alien beings dancing across a "Happy Birthday" banner, a Chinese lantern with kitties on it, and plenty of balloons.
The gifts address the things I enjoy most. There's a set of pencils for writing — Harry Potter pencils, since I enjoy those stories so much; an ice pack that will come in handy after a hard workout; a triple handful of Dove milk and dark chocolates; a Gumby in drag who shimmies on a spring and shakes his hula skirt; a sparkly tiara and 2-inch "sapphire" ring to wear while I'm queen for a day (you know, that crown is pretty comfortable); a curly ribbon broach/corsage to enhance the look; and a Kung Fu Hamster, a 6-inch-tall martial arts master in robe, sash and headband who dances, sings "Kung Fu Fighting" and swings his nunchucks around if you squeeze his paw. He has already serenaded the entire office several times.
Then there's the food. Ms. Wild Rice picked up no fewer than four flavors of Ben & Jerry's ice cream this morning and drove to work with the air conditioning on — on a 45-degree day — so they wouldn't melt. El Queso Grande commissioned a beautiful chocolate cake with white icing, accented with scallops and lavender roses. The checkout clerk was impressed enough to comment on how lovely and feminine it looked, but she hadn't read the message on top. The pastel frosting spelled out "Kick butt, Kim!" We sliced off the "butt" part first to avoid offending the human resources department. Everyone is more than full and buzzing on a sugar high, and we haven't even gone to lunch yet.
Did I mention that I'm spoiled? I am. And I love it. Thanks for great birthday fun, everybody!