Friday, March 9, 2012

On Being 31

Today is my birthday. I am now officially, not just 30, but in my thirties. Mulling the sound of that around in my head. I feel like the appropriate response is, "Oh God, when did this happen? I'm getting so old, what have I accomplished?!" But to be honest, I don't really feel that way.

Me as a little lass

To start, I don't feel 31. Or, maybe I'm just not really sure what 31 is supposed to feel like. I still feel like the same old me. Sometimes I wonder at the fact that the numbers are creeping up there, but I don't feel like anything has really changed. Sure, I suppose I'm a little more mature (a little), I have a stable job, a car payment, I pay my bills responsibly. But I still have yet to feel that pressing anxiety or tiredness that you hear about when people realize they are getting old.

Next, the "I haven't accomplished anything," "This is not where I thought I'd be at 31" argument. Admittedly, my big plans did not roll out exactly as I pictured they would in my young whippersnapper days. I did not move to New York after college. I do not write for a major travel magazine. Once I changed those plans and decided to go for a PhD in Anthropology, I realized my love for ethnology and research could not support my absolute disinterest for teaching. So, here I am now, 31 and doing field marketing for a pizza chain. It's not my dream job, but I get to travel a lot and work at home when not on the road. And when not working on that, I am constantly pursuing what has suprisingly become by dream job: event planning.

All that to say, I may be getting older, my plans did not turn out exactly as expected, but I'm ok with that. If I had moved to New York after college, I would never have taken the jump from good friends to a relationship and later marriage with my hubs. I wouldn't have gotten to live in Brazil or New Mexico. And if I hadn't decided not to move forward with my PhD in Albuquerque and move back to Tennessee, I would never have started an event business with Becca.

Some of my adventures so far.
I still feel like I have accomplished a lot:

  • I have a wonderful husband with whom I can be utterly stupid and never act old
  • I have managed to get two bachelor's degrees (even if I am not exactly working in either field)
  • I am a small business owner
  • I have lived in another country (Brazil)
  • I have traveled to many more (count is up to 20)
  • I, with the help of the hubs, had the guts to move across the country for school and the guts to come home when it didn't work
  • I am a published writer, even it's been awhile since my last freelance job
  • I have finished a half marathon and will do another in April
Things that I look forward to accomplishing in the future:

  • Growing our business to something that is more than just on the side
  • Owning a house
  • Being a parent (one day)
  • Continuing to laugh often with my hubs
  • Paying off my credit cards
  • Traveling to even farther and more fabulous places
  • Learning to love cooking non-dessert foods
  • Becoming a better writer
  • Adding continuously to this list

Me at 31
Even though my metabolism may have slowed down a bit and I'd rather go to bed than stay out till the crack of dawn, I'm still excited about what the future holds for me and all the goals I have to work towards. Yes, I think I can handle this getting older thing.

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