Josh's B'day

Well, I want to say thanks again to everyone for all their loving support and comments on my birthday. I guess 25 is another big one in a way, but I cant remember really why..........oh yeah now my car insurance is cheaper.....what a day, I must be that much more responsible. I knew it! I woke up and thought "Wow, I feel so responsible. No wonder 25 is the limit, those damn 24 year olds have nothing on me! Iresponsible kids!"

So now that I am officially a responsible adult, I guess Ime gonna have to make a few changes. No more gratuitious nights on the town, no more taking my health for granted, no more singing in the wee hours of the morning. Hmmmmmmm, maybe singing will have to stay. Or maybe just humming, we can compromise a bit here cant we?

It was fun to be in Paris for this day of all days. You only gte to turn 25 once, so why not in Paris? The city where I had my first beer, where I learned to ride the subways, dodge tourists and generally avoid late night confrontations with strangers. It is a city of history and art, moral sacrifice and emotional hysteria, where the old meets the new and cultural crossover.

The city seems quite similar to what I remember. There is an emphasis on good living and common decency on the simplest levels, yet you often see very rude encounters happening everywhere you turn. Politeness is common in almost eveyr interaction, but at the wrong time of night, the waiter can have an air of disregard strong enough to seem rude, while talking to you through his nose. Maddening how these clashing viewpoints can occur. But at the bottom of it all, is a sense of being Parisian that I think permeates the way everyone here interacts and lives. They love their Wine, yet hate the full work day. The canals offer beauty, yet are at the same treated like a personal city garbage dump. The money is not something to be attained through any means like the U.S., but it is still a deciding factor for everyone because how else could you afford eating out in this city everyday? The traffic seems neccesary, yet a large group of people have decided to risk life and limp daily dodging it on their motorcycles breaking every law you would think they have. We have tried to comply to this difficult set of rules, and in the end often failed miserably, but sometimes on a momentous occasion, we have been succeeding greatly.

This town is almost over for us on this trip, we have overstayed our welcome. We have terrorized the maids with our late wakeups and room changes, the restaurants we have closed down on a regular basis, and the locals dont appear to have become used to our brash yet seemingly well timed movements. Overall, I am, ready to get into Ireland and see some old countryside again before we terrorize another city. Oh wait did I say terrorize, dont think I can use that word in this day and age! ill get myself and all my kin locked up for words like that. May have to stay here in Europe forever, avoiding the secret police who are keeping the great nation of the U.S. safe from terrorism...........again.

My birthday was fun, we cruised the town, and I saw alot of things that brought back many memories. My birthday party in itself was great. My best friend Geoff came with us to Paris on Friday. My other cousin Tom arrived early on Saturday morning. My cousin Julie, her boyfriend Paolo and some others joined us for dinner on my birthday on Saturday quite late. We found ourselves in a few different establishments over the course of the night and ended up drinking beers at 7 in the morning when one place finally kicked us out. It was good times all around, and I felt surprisingly good the next afternoon when I woke at around 2pm. Kinda like getting a good nights sleep in Halifax time wise. Thanks again to all who called and congratulated, the next update will be from Ireland.

"Never get too old to forget what its like being young"-Joshua Ewing, 2005