Earlier this year while teaching the novel <em>the Great Gatsby</em> I was struck by a line I didn't remember ever having read or paid much attention to, in the middle of the novel Nick Carroway the narrator states: 30 is five years too old to lie to myself and call it honor. (For the record, I just glossed that quote from memory as I don't have a copy of the book in front of me. <em>Students</em>: I can do these things on a blog. Not in a paper.)

I guess you notice these things when you need to, when they are relevant. This is the year that I too turn 30. In fact, I am turning 30 this week. I feel pretty great about it. There have been no nightmares. No aches or pains. No panic attacks. No obsessive thoughts. No acid reflux. All in all not bad for another birthday.

Nick says that 30 is five years too old to lie to yourself and I can't really help but to agree. In my life it's been clear that the more I realize how little I know about life and how much more confident I feel about that. This week, I've been thinking about the fact that I moved to Bulgaria at 27. Picked up my life and moved 10-timezones from home.

Needless to say, living in Bulgaria in my late 20's has taught me a lot. Here's a run down:
<ol>
	<li>Don't take yourself too seriously.</li>
	<li>Slow down. <em>Why are you in a hurry? </em></li>
	<li>Turn off your ipod. Put your book down.</li>
	<li>Say, Yes. Even when it's easier to say no.</li>
	<li>Work at learning the language.</li>
	<li>Take the train or the bus. It's an experience every time.</li>
	<li>Don't worry about not fitting in. You will  probably never be a local and that's okay.</li>
	<li>Buy yourself flowers.  No one else is going to buy them for you--at least in the beginning.</li>
	<li>Ask questions. Lots of them.</li>
	<li>When you need it, ask for help. But try to do it yourself first.<!--more--></li>
	<li>Walk around your neighborhood.  Get to know where you are living. Look for treasures.</li>
	<li>Look both ways before you cross the street. Then you might want to check again.</li>
	<li>Open yourself up to possibility.</li>
	<li>Wear what you love and make sure that you have a great pair of shoes.</li>
	<li>Buy what you love. You'll never regret having a rug, wood carving, pottery or painting.</li>
	<li>Kisses regularly win out over handshakes.</li>
	<li>Everything is changing. All of the time.</li>
	<li>If homemade is an option, snap it up.</li>
	<li>Be open to new things.</li>
	<li>Use clothespins to dry your clothes on a drying rack on your balcony. If even if you think you don't need to. You need to.</li>
	<li>Personal space is different outside of the States.</li>
	<li>Eat banitsa, shopska salad and anything from the grill. Drink rakiya. Do as the locals do. Just don't fool yourself. You'll never be able to drink as much rakiya as they can.</li>
	<li>If you forget about the previous advice and think you can in fact keep up, make sure that you take an aspirin or three the next day.</li>
	<li>Take your camera along. Take photos.</li>
	<li>Put on a smile. Just know the stereotype is that Americans smile too much and are fake. Embrace it. Smile like you mean it.</li>
	<li>Talk to anyone and everyone.</li>
	<li>Have a coffee <em>and</em> take your time doing it.</li>
	<li>Call your mom. Regularly.</li>
	<li>Don't worry so much. Things have a way of working out.</li>
	<li>Look for adventures in unexpected places.</li>
</ol>