~Whatssername

Birthdays aren't what they used to be. Its become less of an accomplishment turning another year older and more of an ingrained ritual, a meaningless celebration, and to some the grave realization that we are one year closer to white hair and wrinkles, nursing homes, and our expiration date.

Today... i really dont understand this celebration. I mean way back before the invention of health care, sanitation, antibiotics, and all those wonderful technologies that we take for granted, birthdays must have been a real milestone. If i lived in the 18th century, id be having a parade because today is the 20th year i've survived. Yes, survived. I would have avoided the high infant mortality rates, all those bouts of influenza and pnemonia that people perished from, even fatal accidents from doing everyday chores. Today, i would be one of those lucky people who would live to see their twenties. Survival of the fittest.

Yet i also realise that if i had been living in the 18th century, i probably - no - definately would never celebrate my 20th birthday. I would have died at age 4 from choking on my food... or age 7 from pnemonia... or any one of those times i got severely ill during childhood from allergies. So yea.... year 20... here i come.