luzula

And it was good. I'm a bit dazed and tired now, the day after, but it was good. It was my first big party since my dissertation in 2008, actually. The intial steps of choosing whom to invite and when/if to remind people to reply to the invitation were fraught with social anxiety, which I don't usually suffer much from. But in the end it was absolutely worth it!

I had rented a place which was super-cheap but lovely in every way, with a dining room with lots of windows facing west towards the sea, and a second floor with mattresses for people who wanted to sleep over. It is owned by a temperance society which means no alcohol, but I did not mind that. Actually I preferred it, and it was nice to get back at my mom who pressured me into having wine at my dissertation party even though I didn't actually want to. : P

The weather was glorious. We started by going to a local nature reserve for a picknick, and there we also had a quiz walk (Google Translate tells me it's called that in English?) where people answered questions about me to see who knew me best. Which was fun, maybe I'll throw some of them up on a poll. *g* Then we went down to have dinner, which was a potluck. Some people just came on the picknick, some just for the dinner. I think we were about thirty for dinner. First I was irrationally worried there wouldn't be enough food, then I was irrationally worried there would be far too much food. In the end there was food left over, but not a ridiculous amount (well, okay, there was a ridiculous amount of good seasoned cheese, but I have shredded and frozen that and will use it for future pizzas and pies).

I said I just wanted food contributions and that presents were not necessary, but I did get some presents! The nicest was from an artist friend of mine who had framed an Earthsea map that he had drawn and labeled the islands with things and places we had in common or had talked about, or things he knew about me. So lovely. ♥ I'm going to put it up by my bed. Another friend had whittled a wooden spoon for me, for use in the field.

Overall I felt like I didn't have time to spend time with everyone, but I guess that's natural. Also in the beginning I felt responsible and worried a bit that people would not have fun, but that passed later. The upstairs rooms with all the mattresses were great for the kids, they built fortresses and stuff. *g* Seven adults and a kid stayed overnight, and four of them stayed to help me clean up, which was super appreciated.

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ride_4ever

Yay birthday! Glad that you posted about these delightful party details.

Never heard of the thing you've translated as "quiz walk". Is this a common birthday party game in your part of the world?

luzula

Thank you, and thanks again for the card!

It is when you put up pieces of paper along a trail, and there are three alternative answers for every question and you have to choose one. This is a common thing in Sweden not just for birthdays. Does it not happen in the US?

rachelmanija

I've never heard of it, but it sounds fun.

Well, it's a big country, so I can't be sure this has never been done in the U.S., but it's certainly not something common. I had never heard of it before and when I did an Internet search for it just now all the references I found for such a thing being held were in England.