The History of Thirty One Years

I celebrated 31 years on Monday. Our DEATH BY CHOCOLATE party went well and everyone stayed until around 12am....which is way later than I usually stay up even for a Saturday. It was lots of fun though and I really didn't miss much sleep.

Here are some highlights of my birthday weekend in pictures. (Unfortunately there are no pictures of my party though.)





Have you ever googled the year you were born to see what was in the news back then? I think you will be amazed at how old I really am from some of the things that happened in 1978.

1. First test-tube baby born in Britain
2. Charon, the moon of Pluto is discovered.
3. Average Worker earns $10,500 per year
4. Bottled Water was introduced
5. Serial Killer Ted Bundy was finally captured
6. Drinking age in the USA was raised to 21 (beginning in Michigan)
7. The Average Cost of a home in the USA in 1978 was $54,800
8. The Unabomber killed his first victim, Hugh Scrutton who was killed in his computer store in Sacramento, California, by a mail package that exploded in his hands.
9. The movie Grease was shown in theaters across the country
10. The first computer bulletin board system (CBBS) was created in Chicago
11. Charlie Chaplin's remains were stolen from Cosier-sur-Vevey, Switzerland
12. U.S. President Jimmy Carter decided to postpone production of the neutron bomb - a weapon which could kill people with radiation but leave buildings relatively intact
13. The Commonwealth Games opened in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. (LET ME HEAR A HOOT HOOT FROM ALL ALBERTANS!)
14. U.S. Army Sergeant Walter Robinson "walked" across the English Channel in 11 hours 30 minutes, using homemade water shoes.
15. Indira Gandhi is re-elected to the Indian parliament. (YAY FOR GIRL POWER!)

So much has happened throughout the course of my life too. Technology gets better and better everyday, new products and faster services make our lives easier, but are we losing that closeness that we once had when there were no cell phones, pagers, blackberries and notebooks? Sometimes I wish things were a little simpler, like it was back in 1978, but then I am reminded I TOO am a fast-paced girl. I hate to cook so I whip-up something quick and easy. I go to the car-wash instead of washing it myself. I write blogs instead of calling everyone I know to tell them what is happening in my life. Times have changed and I know I must face that reality. I just can't believe my kids will probably ask me someday what a record player is or how to do long division instead of using a calculator (or some other digital device). Will they ask me how we managed without hair conditioner or microwaves?