A trophy for my efforts

a trophy and stars
Photo by Nataliya Vaitkevich on Pexels.com

The reasons why I should get a trophy for my efforts.

On June 2, I turned one year older than last year. That means I’m one step closer to death, but hopefully, I won’t die in many years. I went on a cruise to Stockholm alone for the first time ever. Before, I went with my parents and on class trips. Of course, I travelled alone inside the country. This was the first time I was alone abroad. It was only a cruise, but that’s a start. I stayed on the ship for 23 hours. It was kind of lonely since Finns don’t talk to strangers. But I didn’t need to go through the hassle that I went with my dad. He always wanted to sit and drink beer. But at least then, I had company. A good thing about travelling alone is you can go as you please. If I was tired, I would go to bed. I did that without telling another person if I wanted to sit on deck and read a book. On the cruise, there were a lot of families, so there weren’t young party people. It’s calmer to be on board when there aren’t drunk people there. In general, there weren’t many people on the cruise, which was nice. You didn’t need to queue anywhere. It’s been a heatwave in Finland, so sitting on deck with the wind blowing was nice. The best part of a 23-hour cruise is the buffer and tax-free shopping. I only buy sweets/candy because I don’t like alcohol, and I don’t smoke. Unlike some people in Finland.

For some people, unemployment brings them down or being single. It brings me freedom and confidence that things will get better. The only time I get depressed is when I’m forced to do things I don’t want to do. I’m selective, and I’m not ashamed of it. I don’t go for the 2nd best as Madonna sings in Express Yourself. It’s better to be alone than socialise with the wrong people. I have had enough of those when I was younger. Life is too short to have toxic people in your life.

I should get a trophy for tolerating people in the first place. I don’t need to get it from others because I can get it alone. Treat yourself with a trophy of your choice once in a while. I will award myself with sweets/candy that I bought from the cruise ship. I have always had a sweet tooth, no matter how I feel.

No one says happy birthday anymore

happy birthday card and presents on table
Photo: Free WP Photos

Happy birthday to me 🥳🎂

No one says happy birthday anymore, except if you mention it’s your birthday. On Facebook, you get notifications when it’s a birthday. Maybe the people who follow me don’t have it on. I used to get much more in the past. I wish people happy birthday, but I don’t get one back. Birthdays are not the same anymore anyway. It won’t ruin my day if no one says Happy Birthday. Either way, it’s nice when someone does say it. I only celebrate a birthday by going out to eat and maybe a cake. But that’s about it. I don’t want to fuss about any of that.

I don’t need birthday presents either because I already have everything I want. It was different when I was a kid. Birthday parties were necessary too. Why would you like to celebrate becoming older? Life is strange. When you’re young, you want to get older, but when you are, you wish you could be younger. Nothing is ever good enough in a person’s life.

If no one says happy birthday to you. You should say it to yourself because there is nothing wrong with saying that. So I say Happy Birthday to me.

I only celebrate birthdays

kids birthday celebrations
My birthday when I turned 6 in 1983

I only celebrate birthdays and Christmas holidays. I don’t care about Valentine’s Day or Friend’s Day, as we call it in Finland. You should celebrate it every day. You don’t need to do it only on this day. I don’t know why you should have a particular day for it. Maybe it’s just a way to rub it on people doesn’t have friends or loved ones. Either way, it’s an unnecessary day.

When I was a kid, I had birthday parties. It was nice to get presents. We had cake and played put a tail on a donkey. That’s what I had when I turned 6. Birthdays were important then, but as older as you get, you don’t celebrate them the same way. Who wants to get old anyway? The last time I had a birthday party was when I was in 5th or 6th grade. Today all I need is a meal with dessert, and then that’s over. Last year I was at some kind of party, the Duran Duran concert. People only congratulate me on Facebook because that’s what the notifications say. I don’t get many congratulations anymore. Maybe they don’t care. Actually, I don’t get any responses on whatever I post. I only post for myself, so I don’t feel so bad.

I haven’t had any friends since 9th grade, but I have managed without any. The last time I saw my former classmates was over 20 years ago. I don’t even know if they’re still alive. You lose touch with people for different reasons, but that’s life. Some find new friends, but some don’t. In the filmmaking course I’m doing, I won’t have any contact with my classmates when it’s over in August. I talk to them, but that’s about it. Typically, I don’t have much in common with people. They’re not on the same wavelength as me. They’re not asking me anything either, so it feels like people don’t want to get to know me. It’s their loss. I have other things to think about.

Different people celebrate in different ways. Some have big parties where they go dancing, and some celebrate quietly at home. There are no right and wrong ways to celebrate. You do the way you feel like. I only celebrate birthdays and Christmas holidays quietly without a big fuss. For me, other celebrations are only an ordinary day among others.