ways in which my birthday is awesome

[fox]

• presents, including good ones from my folks (and more to come, because my father tells me things shipped in two packages)
  
• tax refund check arrived (w00t!)
  
• the weather is gorgeous today (despite the high pollen count)
  
• lunch out with wordplay and ellen_fremedon (zomg FULL OF FOOD)
  
• money does, apparently, grow on trees/from the ground/etc. -- found a random $3 in the parking lot on the way back from lunch (three twenties would have been nice, but three singles is better than a poke in the eye)
  
• Jerry Falwell has died (sympathy for those who are grieving, but I'm not at all sorry he's gone)
  • Okay, but, this WaPo article attributes to Jerry the following quote: "I shudder to think where the country would be right now if the religious right had not evolved[.]" Evolved, y'all -- are you listening, Intelligent Designers? -- and I can't even give props to the staff writer and editor on this one.

And it's not even 3:00!