Dear December 17th,

December 17th is a pretty good day if you're reading about it on Wikipedia. It's the day the first Final Fantasy game was released; a franchise that I'd come enjoy a lot. It's also the day the Wright Brother's performed their first controlled-powered flight and conveniently the first flight of many other aircraft. The first episode of the Simpson's even aired on this day in 1989. Along with important historical events like these you'll also find a long list of births and deaths. However there is one birth that's missing. Mine. Maybe one day it'll be on there. So on December 17th you'll find me being a bit selfish celebrating being born instead of celebrating "Wright Brothers Day".

For a long time I always thought of my birthday as just that day I'd get some gifts from folks. But I guess when you're young sometimes you can miss out on the real value of things. Slowly I started appreciating my birthday because it meant getting together with my family but I still really enjoyed the gift bit. Slowly over the years though excitement about gifts has declined. To clarify quickly, maybe by the time I'm 70 I'll be over the gift thing, for now though I'm still a fan. If anyone wants a hint about next year... I'd really like a pair of nice rubber boots, hand knitted wool socks and mittens. If somehow a sweater made it my way..... Anyway, it's not all about presents anymore I swear!

So what is it about? It's about celebrating life. Isn't that the best gift of all? What's cooler than life? Wool socks and raspberry jam (not together please) come close. But nothing quite compares. On December 17th 1991 I was given a ticket to experiencing the greatest theme park ever, Earth. I'd give it a 5/5 on TripAdvisor for sure. There are all kinds of cool things to do like: eating, sleeping, drinking, breathing, cycling, running, talking, daydreaming, reading books, climbing trees, watching a sunset, getting rained on, listening to music, watching clouds, and looking at stars. The list goes on forever. But I'd like to take a minute to talk about cycling. Why? Because cycling helped me realize I love being alive. It was the gateway drug to life for me. Cycling made me pay attention to my body like I never really had before. I found myself enjoying exerting myself, breathing hard, sweating. Soon I was hooked on the rush of the wind through my hair (beard too), the smell of cold mountain air, the view from the top of a climb, taste of thirst quenching water, texture of a gooey Clif Bar. Even when I hate it, I love it. 28 degree F Winter Wilkesboro rides? That helped me learn what my body is capable of and how good a Snickers and a Coke tastes.

Slowly this mindset crept into the rest of my life. I'd find myself taking pleasure from a deep full breath, unable to resist a smile and laugh as I walked down King Street in the sun. Just today in Scotland I had to pause while working and stand still in the woods watching the snow fall while the wind whipped through the treetops. That's what my birthday is about.

Of course it's also about friends and family. The people that got me this far. As I said earlier on, usually we have a gathering with family. But here I am in Nethy Bridge far from family. Luckily Valery and David were here for me. When I showed up to work on the 17th they let me know we'd be going out to eat lunch at 12:30. They'd take me to the Heather Centre where I tried stovies and clootie dumplings. David even pulled out a couple of flasks and poured a few drinks, I'm not entirely sure that's a kosher move in a restaurant. But as they're elderly locals I don't think anyone minded. To my amazement they even handed me a gift. I'd unwrap it to find a copy of "The Well at the World's End" a novel by a Scottish author. I'm keen to start reading it soon, maybe tonight. We were a bit late returning to The Lazy Duck but the conversation and meal was well worth it. And it meant I didn't have as long of a work day.

Later on when I returned to the Dell I'd run into Paul (my roommate) and Ross (Dell co-owner). Ross had just given Paul some goodies from the butcher for us to enjoy. Paul and I would eat like kings before heading up to the fire pit to enjoy a roaring fire and drinks with Ross. We'd also have cupcakes courtesy of Polly (Ross's other half) and Harris their three year old. Paul's friend Joe who was visiting even whipped some cream for us. When I first arrived everyone used the expression that they thought I had "landed on my feet" here. Guess that means they thought I'd fit in well. But fitting in is easy when you're surrounded by incredible people.

I couldn't have imagined a better day to celebrate coming into this fantastic world.

Sincerely,
Zeb

P.S.
Shout out to Emily for being the first person to post a "Happy Birthday" on my Facebook wall. And huge thanks to Will and Zach (guest appearance by Jack and Jordan) for taking time to chat with me via Facebook video calls. Really enjoyed seeing you all and I'm looking forward to hanging out IRL soon. Pic Related; It's y'all.

P.P.S.
Flights are booked! I'll be back on American soil January 31st.

Will and Zach (Jordan too)