The Birthday Fury
In the beginning I committed the mistake of taking her at her word once my pal claimed she wasn't fussed about her birthday.
I got her a card, however I did not plan an activity or bake a cake. I can't even recall if I got her a present or not. What a mistake. She became incredibly furious with all her mates and insisted at the last minute that we cancel our plans to join her to celebrate her birthday.
Now I realise that it is just the way she is.
Some folk prefer to make all the decisions when it's their birth day. She prefers for somebody else to make all the decisions.
For her, the best bonus about a birth day is that you don't need to take a decision, but your day is nonetheless packed with people and activities which you love.
Every summer in the run-up to her birth day my acquaintance will do the same act.
She claims she does not want to make a big deal of her birthday and that she does not want to arrange any plans for a night out. She says it is simply another day and that she does not need anyone to make a fuss. I have been friends with Claire for years, so now I understand how the whole thing pans out.
Once my friend awakens and comes downstairs, she requires us to have already assembled, waiting for her with the candle previously lit on her birthday-cake and ready to burst into song. We have birthday-cake and mugs of tea for breakfast.
Following on from a leisurely brekkie, all of us head out for the surprise activity, usually organised by me.
In the past we've been to a play, on a ghost tour, and to a tango hall. It doesn't really make much difference where we go as long as it's a surprise and the girls are all there. After that it's time for a delayed lunch and a couple of beverages prior to heading to the house to get ready for the night's events. Once more the place ought to be a surprise. This year we're heading to a live music gig, then to a karaoke bar.