A happy BLARGHday with Bubbles & Co. in Buffamalo

I’m about to blow… your… MIND. Brace yourselves for a post within a post. A POST… within a POST!

I woke up yesterday feeling depressed as all heck since it was November the 13th, 2010. My last day as a 24-year-old.

I was born some 25 years ago, and up until my parents stopped throwing bashes for me at the local bowling alley / gymnastics studio / McDonald`s Caboose (hooty hoooo!) this day was one to be celebrated. Cherished, even.

Then I turned 16 and, with the exception of one INSANE party I hosted back in my Windsor bar-star days (I`d need to go into the annals of my external HD for pics from that…), I`ve kept things pretty low key.

To me, birthdays are about sad displays of self-aggrandizement (Pay attention to me! I was born one time!) mandated binge drinking (plus subsequent hangovers) and Facebook walls clogged with fake accolades (oh who am I kidding, I love that part).

I started writing a post yesterday to get some things off my chest and out of my eyeballs, which were welling up with tears at every turn. I thought it would be cathartic to blog. Here it is:

`Please forgive me for what I`m about to write. I don`t want to come off as a negative Nancy -  especially here on my blog, which is supposed to be about all things schmawesome (you know, toys, events, adventures …stuff that makes me smile.)

The thing is,  life isn`t always awesome and I`m not always happy – not even on days when I`m mandated to be so. If I`m going to keep it real,  my blog`s got to reflect that from time to time.

That Periodic Table shower curtain got me grinning from ear to ear, but birthdays in general – MY birthdays, that is – do not.

They haven`t for a long time.

A lot of people are consoling me with lines about the joys of growing older, which I appreciate, but this does little to help abate my melancholy as I`m not upset about aging. Not in the least. What I`m stressing is the pressure of having a happy birthday – which I rarely ever do.

Just then, Walshie came to pull my emo-self away from the computer talking some smack about going to Buffalo in t-minus one hour.

I was like “Screw my birthday. Wake me up Monday comes” but then he told me about how his co-conspirator had wranngled us some backstage tickets to the sold out Trailer Park Boys Drunk, High and Unemployed tour show at Buffalo State University.

SCORE!

Turns out, a friend of a friend of an awesome friend just so happens to be the ever-so-talented actor and musician Mike Smith (Bubbles) – who was kind enough to hook us up with these tickets. Thanks budday!

Leave it to my favourite S-Dubzies (Sean Walsh and Sean Ward ) to give me a birthday for the books. I`d fight a feisty leprachaun for either of you guys any day.

In fact, I`d welcome the opportunity…

Here I am rapping on stage with Bubbles. Congrats to Sean, by the way, for 6 months of vlogging EVERY SINGLE DAY. That`s dedication, my friend

After the show, we headed backstage and I played with this cool trailer guitar a little bit.

You know that when I say “played with” I mean “posed with” right?

The Seans played too:

And then we walked to some packed University bar where I got lippy with a morbidly obese doorman who rolled his eyes and scoffed when I complimented his (sweet but huuuuge) period table of elements T-Shirt. What a prick.

But I digress. Back to Ricky, Julian and Bubbles.

The boys changed out of their costumes and met us upstairs at this rockin’ little pub.

*duckface alert*

I spent about an hour sitting there sipping on Michelob, chatting with John Paul Tremblay (Julian) about technology (He rocks a Samsung Galaxy and liked my HD Canon), different cities (New York beats L.A.) and other things… like the ridiculous amounts of dope you’re offered at every turn when you’re one of the Trailer Park Boys and why he’s got a cute little heart tattooed on his hand.

Oh – and before you ask, he was drinking Blue Light – not rum and coke.

I was tempted to ask the guys if they remembered me from that one time we met in Windsor like, 3 years ago, but I refrained. I’m sure they hang with a lot of random blonde bartenders after hours. Actually, judging by the volume of excited girls hovering around, randomly jumping onto Robb‘s lap for pictures, I’m quite certain of it.

Post-post-show, Walshie and I jumped into the car and made it as far as Niagara Falls before we decided to go on another adventure.

Jayyyykayyyyy

We didn’t go over the falls in a barrel, but we did drive up to the edge so that I could take a gander. It’s been more than a decade now since I’ve been and we thought it might be fun to check it out.

I forgot how completely terrifying and loud those waterfalls are.

Today, I woke up to some flowers and Starbeez. I was so tickled that I almost forgot about the whole “quarter century” thing.

Almost.

Even this cute photo of mom and Tick in my inbox couldn’t quite rid me of the blues, so I tried to distract myself. I went to the gym, played on the Facebook, talked to my brother on the phone (It’s his birthday too. We’re exactly three years apart. My parents say it wasn’t planned…)

Then I figured it was time to go shopping because I really, really need some new clothes, shoes, coats and bags. Who doesn’t?

I rode a fake sheep and stressed a lot over what to buy, what not to buy… “Is this too young for me to wear, now that I’m 25? Am I supposed to shop at Jacob, now that I’m 25? Can I still wear chucks, now that I’m 25?”

I ended up driving my partner-in-crime crazy before finally deciding to get myself a sweater from Aritzia and peace the hell out of that mall for some dinner.

Then we came home so that I could BLOG ABOUT EVERYTHING and watch some teevee. No way in hecks am I going out again tonight. Animation Domination with my tightest homies beats a cold night clubbing in the city any day, imho. Maybe that’s just the suburban latchkey kid in me…

Whatever. Cartoons rule.

Mommy and Daddy come to visit me next week for more birthday celebrations, both mine and Mom’s. I got her something super sweet, and I already know what I’m getting from them because I pretty much told them what I am to get. It is the best. present. ever. I hope I can use it in conjunction with what Frik got me

I posted some more pictures from the TPB show on Flickr, if you’re interested. And why wouldn’t you be, hmmmm?

Love always,

Grandma O’Nizzle.