loving birthday week

That’s all I had time to do yesterday as the rest of my birthday was spent being birthday-like.

My friend Jessica came over and after running my errands (the next batch of Squishy shirts is in the mail), we had lunch and got our nails done. I have pretty pink nails.

I had class yesterday and I knew I was going out for celebratory drinks afterwards, so I had to get just a bit dressed up, but not too dressed up as sometimes in improv class you end up rolling on the dirty floor.

“Rolling on the Dirty Floor” is the name of my twenty-third album, by the way.

You know what’s nice about Birthday Week? The constant surprises. The nice things people say or do. Yesterday was filled with little things that touched me or made me smile. Flowers and cards and gifts sent to my house, forcing the UPS man to finally ask if I was running some sort of business. There were nice words written and wonderful email sent and just a wonderful vibe of care from the people in my life, including y’all. Thank you for that.

Anyway, so Birthday Week is going on amazingly well. Ray brought home a cake yesterday. It was a Tiramisu cake. That boy knows where I’m weak. The icing on the cake read, “Old Pam.” So, you know, it was still a cake from Ray.

I was walking to class last night when a man shouted from across the street, “Hey, pretty girl! Hey!”

I looked up for some reason.

“You wanna be my friend?”

“I got friends! Thank you, though!”

“Where are your friends?”

“I’m going to see my friends right now!”

“Aw, I can’t be your friend? Just for tonight?”

This is all shouted over traffic across a Hollywood intersection.

“How about you be my friend until I cross this street?”

“That sounds wonderful!”

But this is the second time in that section of Hollywood that I’ve had a stranger ask if I would like to be their friend for the evening. I’m wondering if that’s some sort of prostitution question that I just don’t know about. I suppose if it was then someone wouldn’t shout that across a street.

I was early for class so I stood outside smoking a cigarette.

[scripty]
PUNK BOY
Hey, excuse me. Can I borrow your lighter?

PAMIE
Sure.

PUNK BOY
Thanks. I like your shirt.

PAMIE
Oh, thanks.

He walks away. He turns back around. His increasing number of friends stop and turn around with him.

PUNK BOY
My name’s Shane.

PAMIE
Hi. I’m Pam.

PUNK BOY
Are you new to town?

PAMIE
Sorta.

PUNK BOY
What are you doing here?

PAMIE
I have class. We’re just on break.

The number of punk friends is increasing, and Pamie wonders what they all are thinking as they stare at her.

PUNK BOY
Cool. So, uh, can I get your number and we can go out sometime for just coffee or something?

PAMIE
Oh. I’m really flattered. But, uh, you know, I uh… totally have a boyfriend.

INSIDE PAMIE’S HEAD
Yeah, it’s the “totally” that makes you sound like you’re not lying.

PUNK BOY
Oh. Well, I can understand that. I’m too late. Thanks, though.

PAMIE
Yeah. Thank you.

MAN IN THE INCENSE STORE STANDING NEXT TO PAMIE
Hey, I just opened up a smoking section in here. You wanna come inside and smoke here?

INSIDE PAMIE’S HEAD
So I don’t look like a hooker anymore, that’s not a bad idea.

PAMIE
I can smoke in your store?

MAN IN STORE
Sure. You come in here. You go to classes here?

PAMIE
Yeah.

MAN IN STORE
Well then, you’re my neighbor. You get neighbor discount. Anything here, fifty percent off for you.

PAMIE
Oh.

MAN IN STORE
You like watches? Half off. Any watch. Here. You need body oil?

PAMIE
Not today, I don’t.

MAN IN STORE
You taking acting class here? Because you’re pretty?

PAMIE
I’m taking comedy classes, actually.

MAN IN STORE
So you can be funny on the t.v.

PAMIE
Something like that.

MAN IN STORE
I see you on t.v. someday.

PAMIE
Hopefully. Thanks for letting me smoke here.

Pamie starts walking up the steps to her class. She meets a classmate in the hall.

KYLE
Those are some motherfucking kick ass shoes, girl.

PAMIE
Kyle, in the past five minutes I’ve been hit on more than I can ever remember. I’ve never had a stranger ask for my phone number before. Is it the lipstick? Is it this skirt?

KYLE
Isn’t it your birthday?

PAMIE
Yeah.

KYLE
Birthday glow. You’ve got it all over you.
[/scripty]

And I was feeling pretty damn good yesterday. Maybe that’s what it was. I was feeling good about myself and feeling pretty and important and was having a really good day.

My parents are even having luck in Vegas because it’s my birthday.

I wonder if I can keep the pretty up for the rest of birthday week.

And this morning I went to get my morning coffee and the lady behind the counter asked for my name. “A boy came in here and already paid for you today. Happy birthday.”

Now come on. I totally made the other people in line hate me. I’ve never had anything like that happen to me before and I’m all blushing like Meg Ryan while I prepare my coffee. All doing that Meg Ryan grin/head-shake thing that made America fall for her.

And there were flowers sent here this afternoon from Allison and I think the flowers.com guy is now scared of me.

It’s those little things from the people that you care about that remind you how lucky you are.

Thanks for a great birthday, everyone.