My birthday this year was on a Sabbath so I had extra special blessings all day long. It started out as a quiet gathering amongst friends and quickly turned into one of the cRaZiEsT nights ever.
I started the evening by inviting my closest friends here on campus for a taco/haystacks buffet birthday dinner. Most of my friends here in Sweden are from all over the world so they had no idea what haystacks were. I had to demonstrate the "proper" way to stack a plate but once they caught on there was no stoppin' them. Even one of my Mexican friends said they were the best he'd ever had. Of course he called them a Spanish name that I don't remember but the point is that he said they were good...lol! I even made the black beans from scratch which was the first time I had ever done so. I soaked them overnight and cooked them for about 3 hours but they turned out fantastic. I just might have to make some for potluck back home one Sabbath...maybe not...church folks can be cruel if your dish doesn't taste right...lol!
At the dinner party my friends all brought gifts, which they certainly didn't have to do, but I appreciated nonetheless. I received loads of candy, cupcakes, Swedish food and even a new board game. As I looked at all the gifts I said "so I guess all of you think I only like food and games, huh? Yeah, you're right!" Everyone had a good laugh! After everyone had eaten we started my favorite part of the day...GAMES! Its cRaZy how almost everyone around the world knows the Macarena...I thought that was hilarious!
The dinner party was a pre-party for the big event that was happening directly after in a larger building so before we all left for the bigger shindig they sang Ja må hon leva (Födelsedagssång), the Happy Birthday song in Swedish. Loosely translated it means "Yes, may she live over 100 years old! Certainly, she will live over 100 years old! And when she has lived over 100 years old, yes she shall have lived over 100 years old." It even ends with a four fold cheer or Hurra! Hurra! Hurra! Hurra! I felt so Swedish...lol!
I mentioned something about having a joint birthday party with 2 other friends, a German and a Mexican. Needless to say, it was the cRaZieSt birthday party EVER. Apparently, word got out around campus that some of the international students were having a birthday party so EVERYBODY (and their momma) came out to help us celebrate. We had the celebration on the top floor of one of the dorms and OVER 200 PEOPLE showed up!!! And of course, with a lot of people comes a lot of shenanigans...
Before my arrival there was a shoving match that took place between some girls. I had to travel from my building to the other side of campus to reach the party and as soon as I got to the front door everybody said "You don't want to go in there! There's a fight!". But as most of you know, I always try to mediate situations and I really don't like taking sides unless I have to. So unfortunately, the first 30 minutes of my party I had to calm everyone down, sort the situation out and resolve the matter. Once that was out of the way, I was free to enjoy the party. But the shenanigans didn't stop there either...
For some reason, maybe it has to do with culture or better self-awareness but, Europeans are waaaaaaaaaaay less inhibited than the rest of the world. About halfway through the party a group of cRaZy kids decided it was a good idea to go skinny dipping. The guys stripped down to their boxers and the girls left on only their underwear and they all headed to the campus lake. I couldn't believe it! They had NO SHAME! It's definitely something I will never forget. Trust me, I've already tried...lol!
We finally decided to cut the party short at 3:30am. Yes, clearly I was already tired from the whole affair but I was trying to be a good host. From what I could tell most people had a wonderful time and the sun was already beginning to rise. However, for about 70-80 people they still wanted to keep the party going. They tried in vain to turn the music back on but when that didn't work they just stayed in the hallway talking and laughing. I stayed around and helped clean up a bit but the mess was phenomenal and I decided it would be best to return after a good night's rest. I bid adieu to the remaining guests and made my way home.
The next day I woke up and headed back to the building, dreading the mess that I assumed waited for me. However, upon arrival I saw that many of my friends had already completed the clean up and all that was left was to mop. Thank God for good friends!
