6/26 My birthday

So, I've finally grasped some time to write about my birthday party which took place about 3 weeks ago!
This year's birthday was filled with lots of firsts, appropriate for a year full of firsts, I guess!

For the first time in my life, I had school on my birthday! After all, in America, school doesn't extend into late June. (I have had work on my birthday once, though.) Luckily, I only had one class and it was with my favorite Sugano-sensei! At the end of class, Hinata told him it was my birthday, and he's like "Oh, I'm sorry I don't have anything for you!" Haha, not like he need to get anything for me...why's he so awkwardly adorable? Anyways, hearing his lovely voice throughout the whole class was more than enough♥ Plus, he got up next to me during class so I got to hear his voice up close. Gwah inner explosion...

For the first time in my life, I spent my birthday away from my family. When I took the train in the morning to school, I thought 'Hey, it's my birthday, but none of these people around me know...' It felt a little incomplete to wake up in the morning to a solitary room and not get a birthday hug from my parents, but it's alright...I'm a big girl, so I can deal. haha...

I also organized my own birthday party, ordered a cake (although Hinata paid for it♥), and cooked my own food! I made a bunch of food...I don't think I've made so much since...February. It's not that I don't like to cook, I just don't especially like cooking for myself. I love to cook for other people, and when I do, I think I do a good job. Judging by the fact that it was all eaten by my 7 friends without any of my help, I can say it must not have been completely disgusting...
I took the recipes from a tapas book my mom sent me, thinking I might as well put it to good use while I have it. Here's what I cooked:

Eggplant and red pepper dip with bread

The french baguettes are definitely not what I'm used to though. They're so flimsy and soft that it makes it hard to cut. I think this was the most popular dish.

Potato salad 

The recipe called for an alioli sauce, but I accidentally used up all my eggs, so I couldn't make one. Instead, I just mixed mayonnaise with olive oil and a tablespoon of water to make it liquidy and everyone really liked it!

 Lemon chicken

The lighting makes it look kind of strange, but it was good!

 Deviled Eggs

I also improvised with this recipe, especially since it called for capers and I'm like no that's not happening. (I hate capers) But I made it look pretty and it was tasty!

 My birthday cake!

It was strawberry short cake and was tasty enough, although crazy expensive: around $50. In America, you can get a cake this size for $20 if not less. Plus, it has more substance. Japanese cakes are really light and fluffy with little flavor. But, I'm not complaining. It was delicious! And I love Hinata for buying it for me! My wish for this year? World peace, of course.

I told people they didn't need to bring birthday presents, but a few of them did. Kamelija got me a tiny glass turtle, a glue stick (because I had asked her the other day for glue haha), and a really cute card. The chocoholic Nick got me some English chocolate. Hinata got me the cake, of course. And Tamaki...omigod...he got me the cutest strawberry necklace and wrapped it up himself super cute. Gah, Tamaki's the cutest. I also bought myself a birthday present online which came a few days after my birthday:

It's a DVD of an event that was held for the date simulation game I play. It came with three trading cards, two of which I was like How did they know these were my favorite characters?! Inside the DVD was a pamphlet with all the voice actors that participated in the event. Ahhh the pamphlet is the best part.

Ah! I also got a portable scanner that came in a birthday package from home!♥

Anyways, it was kind of a different birthday than usual, but I still had fun and after everyone left, Kamelija and Nick came to my room and talked with me. They're so sweet. Everyone's so sweet. I have met some great people here. Most of them foreigners, which was a little unexpected, but they're the ones that I can attach to and relate to the easiest. In the end, I suppose it makes sense.

So, I have safely turned 22 years old. I like that number. It's kind of nice. Maybe this year will be a good one. Maybe I can grow up a little bit, have more experiences, meet more people, learn a little more, and become a little bit more. Maybe.