Adventures with Dr. Lady Cutie Troublemaker

40th Birthday Candle/Cake Situation from abbyladybug on Vimeo.

Five days before my birthday, I wrote the following paragraph, but I never posted it. Now I have a video to share, and it seems that this would be exactly the kind of reason to go back to the blog. So here’s how I was feeling 5 days before I turned 40. Now I’m 40 and 1 day, and I feel like the same Abby I did last week. Go figure!

So I started this blog over 5 years ago when I was living in Memphis. I had just moved away from all my friends and wanted to keep in touch. It’s been a wonderful thing for me – having a place to share all the things that have meant something to me. On Sunday, I will turn 40. To me, blogging has been the stable force amidst so much instability: moves, relationships, jobs. And today, at age 39, 11 months, and about 25 days, I feel like I may finally be experiencing some stability. I have a private practice in a lovely building in downtown Raleigh. I have a 3-minute (on foot) commute to my apartment. It’s in this historic neighborhood – so pretty, and it has a great vibe. I’ve got a great boyfriend who loves me, challenges me, and is pretty much more fun than anyone I’ve ever met. Even though I lost Maggie this summer, I’ve got my hilarious Jeep, who (despite forgetting I’ve fed her within about 2 minutes) is an utter delight. Do I still need this blog? I don’t imagine I’ll shut it down, because here, people have me in their feed readers, and if I DO have something to say, this seems a fairly good place to stay it. But life has changed in the past 5 years for me, and a slightly more private online environment (like Facebook) seems a better place to share the “bloggy” topics I used to share here all the time. If you’re still reading, then thanks! Stay signed up, but don’t hold your breath. If you want to see me doing my thing, the better place to check is always Flickr. My photostream is how I communicate to the world now. I tend to save my writing for reports. But like I said, if I have something to say, I’ll be back around. As with most things, my output comes in waves, and right now, it’s ebb-time!

One more follow-up thought: I have some wonderful people in my life. Jake’s planning and generosity this weekend knocked me off my feet. Shannon and Brian are awesome as always (and not just because of Ham Dip, Beer, and DJing). My friends who came are awesome. Lalitree made me Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies. Pamela gave me the prettiest necklace and took a buzillion awesome pictures. Holden gave me a fun quad camera – the REAL kind that uses film. Robert and Elise got a babysitter and made the trek from Durham. Jake’s parents, Nancy and Barry, opened up their home and put on the charm. I could go on and on, but the more I go on, the more I need to talk about every single guest, and I’m sure you’re already bored by now! I am a lucky, lucky woman!

First, a song:

I’ve been making cookies:

And for the best part: BLARTY! I will be at Helios from 7-9:30pm. I hope to see many of you there! 😀

I’m pretty sure blog birthdays aren’t really real causes for celebration, but I’ve been feeling like having a party, and so I’m gonna! My place is a bit too small, so I’m crashing Café Helios Tuesday night 7pm until close with all my favorite friends and readers. So far, 25 have confirmed. I feel like I should make a cake… or bring some sort of tangible representation of my blog, so people can walk up to it and comment at it or something. Any ideas?

I was just taking a walk down memory lane. I can’t post what I was doing 5 years ago today, because that was before it all began, but 4 years ago today, I was discussing my obsession with Google Maps. 3 years ago today, I got caught in a blackout in my favorite pub in Jamaica Plain (my Boston neighborhood) and took pictures. 2 years ago, I was talking about my practice test scores on my licensure exam. One year ago, I was suffering from terrible Monkey Mind (Is it seasonal? Because it’s happening again.). Here is the result: Stream of Consciousness.

Five years is 1,825 days, and all together, I’ve posted 1,480 times. That’s an average of 4 out of every 5 days! It’s a lot, and there was a time when I was frequently posting 2-3 times a day. As with pictures, I post when I like. Since the dawn of Twitter Google Shared Reader (shared RSS) and Tumblr, I no longer use my blog to repost or share items created by other people. This is something I used to do often. In recent years, my posts have become much less frequent, but I still like having the blog. You won’t see 1,825 posts if you search. I have hidden large sections of my archives, just because I don’t see that there’s much of a reason for anyone to be able to have total access to everything I’ve ever posted – well, anyone other than me.

Anyway, point is: Tuesday, 7pm-12am. If we’re friends, or you read my blog, you are invited. Hope to see you there!

In 6 days, this blog will be 5 years old! It’s not a real occasion, but who cares. I wanna have a party! I twittered about this blog party idea, and Katy suggested I have a “blarty,” so BLARTY it is! More details to follow. What do you think a blarty should include? I have to start planning!

Here’s where it all began: Welcome.