YOB: #16. Try To Meet Someone Famous (Part 2)

By Lara

I was rather skeptical about this item on the Year of the Birthday list when Beth suggested it. I knew from the beginning that she wanted the famous person to be Duff from Ace of Cakes. I also knew that I could not afford a cake from their store. I assuaged my skepticism by thinking we would seriously bend the definition of "famous" in order to meet the objective.

I was driving to work two mornings before Beth arrived for the much anticipated "See a Hockey Game" when I heard the local radio host interviewing Mary Alice from Ace of Cakes. They were having a bake sale at the Inner Harbor. It was open to the public. Duff would be there. PERFECT!

I started teasing Beth about a surprise. She absolutely loves Duff, and had no idea what we were going to do. I finally broke down and told her the night before. She was incredibly excited. Did I mention that she loves Duff?

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A Slight Glitch

By Lara

I had planned last week to write this week's article on "Meeting Someone Famous - Lara's Perspective." That was, after all, the next adventure in chronological order. However, the Year of the Birthday has hit a bit of a glitch.

Several weeks ago, I was diagnosed with a kidney stone or several. I was in a lot of pain and vomiting. My illness caused me to miss more work than I would have liked and several planned Year of the Birthday adventures. I was devastated. No one likes being sick or in pain, but I also hate it when I let people down.

Last Wednesday, the pain was so severe that I went to the emergency room. They gave me a CT scan and found a rather large kidney stone is stuck. Saturday I was back in the emergency room. This time, with a broken leg. (That also has something to do with this article being submitted late...)

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YOB: #28. Have A Progressive Dinner

By Lara

I think I went on a progressive dinner when I was in middle school with the youth group I was attending at the time. I don't remember it being terribly painful. I don't remember much about it, actually. I suspect that my being a picky eater played a large part in my remembering the experience positively.

Progressive dinner sounded like something that would be fun to do as an adult, so Beth and I added it to the Year of the Birthday list.

When the day finally arrived, we decided on a four course dinner over several hours.

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YOB: #27. Get A Massage

By Beth

Who doesn't like being pampered? I mean really? I'm not sure I know anyone who would not like to just relax and have someone ease their stress a little. That being said, I have to admit that I had some qualms about getting a massage. Sure, I like having relaxed muscles and have had people give me neck and shoulder massages in the past. But I was married to that person, or in a serious relationship with them. Apart from those type of relationships, I really don't like being touched. I'm not a germaphobe or anything, I just like having my own personal space. My friends understand this about me and love me anyway. But it was with some trepidation that I entered the spa that August afternoon.

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YOB: # 6. Visit The Narnia Exhibit At The Franklin Institute

By Lara

As I've mentioned, I'm a huge fan of stories. I love literature. There are scores of books that I can read and reread without ever getting bored. However, no author has been able to capture my imagination quite like C.S. Lewis. The Chronicles of Narnia are amazing works of fiction, and I read them constantly. The only complaint that I would make to Mr. Lewis about his collection of stories is that he didn't write more of them. I want to live in Narnia. Seriously. I dream about it.

When I heard that Disney was making "The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe" into a movie, I was depressed. I was determined not to see it. I was positive that they would butcher the story. However, my curiosity got the better of me as it usually does. I saw the movie. Obviously, I had some complaints, but they were minor. I enjoyed the movie as a whole, and even purchased it on DVD.

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