I am 20.63 years old today.

At work, the brand of mushrooms we use are MountainView Mushrooms. I went to a Mountain View High School, and I occasionally cheered for the Mountain View Mountain Lions. Wouldn't it be amazing if we had been the Mountain View Mushrooms instead? (Also of interest: there is a type of mushroom called "Crimini" and the note on the side of the box about how to properly store the mushrooms is addressed to "Mr. Retailer".)

Warning: Ambiguous and wordy thoughts about myself to follow. Gross.

--A few things have happened this week that have called for some serious self-evaluation, namely, Personal Sister Interviews. I think the idea of strengths turning to weaknesses and weaknesses to strengths is not just an account of a single moment of inversion but could also be the description of a cycle. I go back and forth on some things constantly. I guess if I flip-flop all the time, I can't really call it a strength. But I sure as heck thought I was good at this one thing, and this interview made me realize how much I've been stagnating. I don't think she realized how much she rocked my world.

Of lesser but still valid self-evaluative potency:

--In the Board question about awesome writers, one mentioned how the new writers all have potential, and then listed every new writer but me. Ouch. Probably by accident, but even if it was no personal jab, it means I'm forgettable, or worse, not even noticable enough to the point that I could be forgotten. From this I concluded to make myself shine. And I will.

--There were some issues at work where a posh position was given to a person much less experienced or qualified than myself or most of the other applicants. There were serious things afoot, with revolts and heavy accusations and at least one firing. I wanted the job, of course, but the part where I actually had to take a long, hard, look at myself was when deciding how I would react with the dismal information I had (from the mouths of many employees). I didn't know how it could get better but I waited for the other side of the story and I'm so glad I did.

And now, in an unexpected turn of events, the whole institution is being razed and reconstructed, so they're hiring more people to this position and I found out today that I'm in. Take this, take the fact that I accidentally blew off a final and was miraculously allowed to retake it (with some points deducted), and take the fact that I have got the maddest cats of the best moral fiber for friends and you would probably conclude that I am a mortal blessed beyond my capacity.

Krebscout's Survival Tip #1: Always have at least one friend with a Polish last name, such as "Kamrowski".