The Birthday Thread

[Zexy]

Oh, birthdays... So much to talk about. Where do we even start.

Do you actually like celebrating your birthday in as a major fashion as possible? Are you slightly indifferent to it? Or maybe do you even despise the idea a little because of getting older?

How would you celebrate it when you were younger? Any memorable moments? What about gifts? Did you ever get something that changed your life? Do you think the symbolism counts more, or would you be OK with just gifting money sometimes?

How do you think of what to get for others as a gift? Are you more of a surprise fan or is ple-planned better?

Let me know what you think, you all!

 

[sleepwick]

as i've grown older i've kinda grown indifferent about the idea of birthdays. the idea of getting older kinda fills me with dread for the past couple of years, but that's mostly because last year i turned 18, and now i'm 19 so i'm just kinda adjusting to being considered an adult and it's a lot of process, yk? but i do generally enjoy my birthdays on the day. i don't celebrate much, aside from just chatting to my friends online and maybe at most going out for dinner or for my 18th i went bowling with my family/friends, but i think it's fine being that way.

i remember wanting to have birthday parties as a kid despite the fact i absolutely hated parties, and looking back on it it's kinda silly now because i just don't like it being that big of a deal. i remember the gift arrangement for my birthdays from my parents usually had one of my gifts being a pokemon game, where they'd buy me one version for christmas and the other for my birthday since my birthday is in february. as a kid i more wanted gifts and honestly preferred being given gifts than money , but now i think that just money is fine by me, in fact im kinda the opposite of that now. i don't think a lot of my family really understand my interests all that well, so it's mostly just better for them to give me money so i can buy my own stuff.

as for others it depends...most of my friends i mostly talk to online, so i usually just do birthday art, sometimes it's a surprise, sometimes it's just spontaneous. it depends. but for irl friends and family i just usually ask them what they want and buy that.

 

[Sheep]

I don't care much for big celebrations and haven't since I was very young, the preference nowadays is something very small eg just having some cake at home with the husband on a quiet evening. Or going out to eat, nothing fancy. These small relaxing things are moments I really appreciate as someone who generally really dislikes having tons of attention on herself + loud noises. Japanese restaurants are one of the best choices for my birthday. <3

 

[Zexy]

I am not sure what the first birthday I remember is, probably 5 or 6 years old.

The 7th one was major, GBA SP and Sapphire, I have gone through that several times.

The 8th one was very cool too, although we did not do it on the actual date of May 6th but the name day May 21st (2005). Still had birthday cake, though. We reserved a newly opened pool bar for a pool party and it also happened to be Eurovision night, and the one where Greece actually won!

No notable birthdays at all till 18th, which was not THAT notable either, because it was right in the middle of the toughest final exam season I have been through. So the actual adulthood party for that happened the night after the last test.

Not much celebration since, maybe a small cake at home that's all, but especially the 25th one was a bit too bad, it devolved into too much of a serious "what are you going to do with your life, you wasted a quarter of it away" talk that just completely ruined the mood.

Will talk about my experiences about others' birthdays in a later post.

 

[colours]

my birthday has usually been nothing more than regular days other than ppl wishing me a happy bday lol. it's kinda sad in a sense bc i'm sort of envious of people who have big parties to celebrate, meanwhile i don't... really have anything.

and don't get me wrong! i think, for the most part, i'm fine with it. maybe i've outgrown the whole "every bday should have a party/celebration" thing. but it sure would be nice to feel something different other than "oh, my birthday again" for once.

 

[Zexy]

Will talk about my experiences about others' birthdays in a later post.

The craziest surprise one has been my mother's in 2006, dad planned a surprise vacation to Paris for both her and I. And dinner reservation at a very famous restaurant (Le Procope).

I have also planned only one more surprise party for a friend in the early uni days, the only other time a surprise actually worked. The organizing for this particular one and the lengths his girlfriend would go to make sure no one spoils it too soon was somewhat astounding, no other party in that friend group worked so well, everyone would just find out earlier.

 

[impervious_gakko42]

I intentionally give people a fake birthday so they leave me alone on my actual birthday. I appreciate their kindness/effort if they go out of their way to do something, really, but I don't think birthdays should be public info by default. My school lists the birthdays of everyone on each respective day over the PA announcements and it makes me very uncomfortable when teachers say anything about mine, god forbid make the class sing happy birthday; it's frustrating that this is something you have to specifically ask to be removed from and not an opt-in thing. Please don't assume that someone would enjoy receiving a grand and/or public gesture about it.

Don't hate my birthday or anything, really it's just another day. I didn't accomplish anything myself, it's just the passage of time. It's not so much of an age thing as it is... well, I just don't see the point.

 

[Zexy]

As an introvert (and maybe neurodivergent) this is unfortunately way too relatable. It really depends on what my mood is like the specific day, but chances are I do not particularly wish to be bombarded with wishes from every single acquintance I might have barely talked with at all over the past year.

That said, I do not make an effort to hide it either, since I believe that will only make me look unnecessarily weird. If it is opt-in anywhere I just provide it (sometimes even begrudgingly) just to be nice/look normal.

 

[Dreary_Rowlet]

Old ass thread but honestly I don't care so here we go!
bump!

I like the idea of a birthday, although I'm not really fond of parties. I sometimes get free stuff, and I get extra tasty food. But really, I'm getting older and slowly getting closer to an end, that scares me. I don't want to get older, I don't want to grow up. I don't want to become another cog in the machine.
And yet I still celebrate it. Why

 

[coordinator lissi]

I like birthdays. Usually I’ll just grab a bunch of my friends and go somewhere. They bring presents, we eat food. Typical birthday stuff.

 

[framefinity!]

…i wish i had found this before since yesterday was my birthday. but, what’s done is done.

personally, for me birthdays are enjoyable depending on how they’re celebrated. i enjoy big parties, but depending on how they’re done, they can feel either extremely enjoyable or really stressful.

 

[Sheep]

…i wish i had found this before since yesterday was my birthday. but, what’s done is done.

personally, for me birthdays are enjoyable depending on how they’re celebrated. i enjoy big parties, but depending on how they’re done, they can feel either extremely enjoyable or really stressful.

Ahh happy belated birthday!! Hope it was good ^^

 

[ekatheparas]

birthdays are pretty fun. nothing actually happens on the actual day itself except for the blessing of a scrumptious cake (I ordered a customized one with a character from the Roblox game PHIGHTING! because we shared a birthday) but almost all my friends remember and i usually end up travelling and getting a lot of souvenirs as a gift, so I'm pretty grateful i get to live another year with some pretty great friends.