a quarter

For those of you who don't know, I turned 25 this week.

I am excited about this for one main reason: 25 is the age when you can rent a car without additional fees.

It's a big milestone because people will give you any size and type of car, thinking you're a mature adult. Really, though, you feel like this: I just graduated from college...wait, was that really 3 years ago? But I don't really know anything, in fact, I know less than I did in college. Why didn't anyone ever tell me that I'll feel stupider as I get older?? Wait, this person thinks that I can pay multiple hundreds of dollars in rent every month? When did I reach the age when hundreds of dollars wasn't a big deal? It was just a few years ago when I thought $100 was like a million!! And why do these people think I can handle all these responsibilities because I definitely haven't reached adulthood!! Don't they say you're as old as you feel? I feel 14, not 25!


I'm also thrilled about age 25 because of the exciting things I'll be doing during this year of my life, such as becoming a hobo on April 30, working at an adventure camp all summer, seeing one of my best friends get married, moving to Uganda, spending a week at the beach with my adopted family, watching my brother graduate from college, learning a new culture simultaneously with a new job, and renting a car without paying underage fees.

Also, some tidbits for you on how the world has changed during the past quarter century:
-"Salad-in-a-bag" was invented in 1989 (age 2)
-Electronic tolls (think EZ Pass) began in 1989 (age 2)
-Dopplar radar started its TV run in 1990 and is still going strong (age 3)
-Powerpoint was unveiled in 1990! (age 3)
-Debit card transactions became popular in 1995 (age 8)
-Disposable contacts arrived in 1995 (age 8)
-DVDs were introduced in 1995 (age 8)
-Blackberries started accepting email in 1999 (when I was age 12)
-iPods were developed in 2001 (age 14)
-speaking of 2001...9/11 was a life changing event for my generation (age 14)

To avoid ending on a downer, here's a shout-out to my friend JenniMarie: on my birthday in 1888, Eastman Kodak was formed.