A very happy unbirthday to us!

From the day I purchased Jake, I knew that I’d strive to be careful about his mileage. I wanted to have him for many, many years to come, after all, and in good shape, if at all possible. I’ve achieved my goal, sometimes putting less than 3,000 miles on him annually - as it has turned out average-wise, he sees about 5,000 miles a year.

This is still WELL under the best case scenario for most used cars and, if I were selling him at some point, I’d feel great about that. However I don’t plan on selling him – ever. I’ve even told Tim that if I’m ever in an accident while driving Jake, it would likely be best to just bury the both of us, without bothering to try to extract me. And I’m *almost* kidding about that.

Jake will be 8 years old this August, and I’m still just as protective of him as the day I brought him home with me. He is the single most reliable thing in my life – my health, my family, my job, even my friends, to an extent, aren’t always as dependable as he has been. Knock on wood, we’ve never experienced a tire issue, an engine issue, he’s never gotten me HOPELESSLY lost, and we’ve never had any problems with getting undue police attention, either.

At some point before the end of June, both Jake and I will pass what *I* consider to be a fairly significant milestone. He will turn 40,000 miles … and I will celebrate 40 years on this planet. Jake will be rewarded with a day of pampering, including a full inspection, complete detail, and his leather will get treated. Meanwhile, I will also figure out a specific way to reward myself. I have had several ideas as to how I’d like to recognize MY day … some are absolute pie-in-the-sky ideas, and some WOULD be do-able, though I’d need to draft a friend (Hi Tim!) to lend an assist. Mostly though, I’d actually really like to just spend it like I have most of my birthdays … which involve multiple cups of hot chocolate, a warm fuzzy bathrobe, and my annual watching of “Breakfast at Tiffany’s”.

Today I received the first well-intended “lunch to celebrate your day” invite … one that I, for political-reasons, will need to accept. And while I know a LOT of people will say “oh well she’s just bummed because it’s a BIG birthday” or “poor thing – alone again on her day”, the truth of the matter is that I actually find little joys in all my days, especially lately. Laughing at goats, “ooohing: and “aaahing” over fancy cars, enjoying purring cats, helping people with grants so they can do really inspiring work, reaching out to dear friends with silly memories … why would I only celebrate these moments once a year?

For that matter – why would anyone?