I find social media birthday celebrations confusing. Is getting tons of “happy birthday today” messages from Facebook “friends” even a little gratifying? It strikes me as such a weird phenomenon of our modern age that I’m not telling anyone on-line that it’s my birthday today.

Another thing that has me confused. A national coffee chain sent me an email for a free drink or food item today for some reason and I can’t decide what to do because my home lattes are better than theirs and it’s not even close when it comes to my home oatmilk-based oatmeal topped with avocado, blueberries, salted pepitas, and cinnamon. Maybe I’ll flip a coin, sell whatever I get at a discount to someone else in line, and then send that two or three dollars to a moderate Democrat running for president. Give him or her a little boost to get over the top.

Besides confusion, I’m feeling gratitude today for my parents for providing such a loving base on which to build an amazing life. I miss them. And gratitude, as well, for the Good wife, daughters, friends, and people who regularly stop by the humble blog.