My arm hurts like a bastard. 15+ years of computer usage and I never got carpal tunnel. 15 minutes of "Captain America and The Avengers," and I'm wondering if I'll ever play the piano again.

Just kidding. I never played the piano. But my arm still hurts.

Much to my surprise, my birthday was today. By "surprise" I mean that my birthday is actually next Friday (the 12th), but for some reason I got cake and presents today. Don't get me wrong, I'll take cake and presents any day of the year, but I began to worry that no one was sure when my birthday really was.

I had a pleasant dinner with my mom, dad, aunt, uncle, sister, and sister's boyfriend. I thought it was just a family gathering, but then after diner the birthday cake and presents were brought out. My aunt was the first to say, "So, which day is your birthday exactly? It wasn't today, was it?"

"No," I said. "It's this friday, the 12th."

I looked around the table, wondering if I might see any facial expressions that said, "Oh shit! It is the 12th." There was only nodding and smiling. I just decided to roll with it and have a good time.

I got a DVD, a computer game, and a good sized chunk of birthday money. The function of birthday money has always been to spend it on something nice for yourself; at least, that's the way I see it. Of course, after being financially castrated by the auto repair guys, I find myself in sizeable credit card debt. I never have any trouble making the monthly payments and then some, but should I use all my birthday money to help chip away at the rather large bill? Where the hell's the fun in that? That's like getting a good book as a present, but you can't read it because you have to use it to keep your shitty desk from wobbling.

Sigh.