Towards the Author’s jubilee

January 11^th, 2014, was a round number anniversary of this website’s author. Here is what the Author himself has to say about the event:

My jubilee passed off wonderfully well and lasted 4 days. It was not noted for its large scale, but, rather, had some symmetry in it. Greeting phone calls could be heard at equal intervals, starting at about 10 am and ending at 10 pm. Their number, having reached the maximum on January 11^th, gradually decreased, with the only one call on January 14^th coming from one of my long-time female friends, who had just returned from her fantastic vacation in Egypt. The age of those involved fluctuated from 22 to 92 years. Among the oldest was my mother’s college friend, aunt Tonya, and also my piano teacher, Olga Zimina. Among the youngest, standing out was Grigory Osipenko, who, on behalf of my former pupils, presented me with a tom-cat greeting card (apparently, hinting at my name’s consonance with the French “le chat”) and the Capricorn’s horn (apparently, hinting at the fact that I am not only the Snake).

The climax of the celebrations fell on January 11^th, when my friends came to see me. Having feasted at my home, they drove me to a neighbouring village, where a children’s choir chanted “Happy Birthday” for me, and the celebrations went on. Things did not turn out without minor incidents, though: my guests’ doggy nearly drowned in my mini-pool. The next day, my neighbours came to greet me. On January 13^th, there was a lull in the celebrations (apparently, due to the date’s “eeriness”). Surely, entertaining guests tired me, and having a break didn’t hurt. On the other hand, a taste for companionship was revived in me, so I felt bored without guests. On the 14^th, however, my relatives arrived, and my brother presented me with a long-awaited printer.

I accepted gratefully these tokens of love and respect: they gently touched my soul, without disturbing my all-embracing solitude. However, Nature did not remain aloof on those days, either. She saluted me with extraordinary warmth that had for so long persisted in our place, amazing, pleasing or annoying the residents of Moscovia.