turning 30, with the help of the Internet

I blogged about turning 29 right around this time last year. In fact, I even made a t-shirt to commemorate the event (that I wore again today). I wrote then, just a few days after my birthday, that I was mostly okay entering the final year of my 20s. Turns out, that was a pretty difficult birthday for me, although, I was also just about to have an art breakdown, which worked out pretty well in the end. Needless to say, October wasn't exactly a highlight of 2006.

So I'm hesitant to write about how I feel on the eve of this particular birthday milestone. Was 29 difficult so that 30 doesn't have to be, like a hard-working parent paving the way for their offspring? Will I blog again in a couple of weeks with a completely cranky outlook? Who knows. All I know for sure is, I definitely can't afford another mid-semester crisis!

And if I am feeling down about the big 3-0, there's lots of advice on the Internet to help me process it all. If you google "turning 30" the top result is this site, I guess to help you feel like 30 really is the new 20 (Gosh, can you imagine if that was really true? As if you were teleported back to the age of 20 at the exact time you turn 30? I think I'd prefer, say, 27. 30 is the new 27. Yeah, that's good). Anyway, this is a pretty good idea, a site that's been passed on from one 29 year old gal to the next as she documents the final year of her 20s. Also in that google search is an article about the eight financially-related things you should do before turning 30. I think I've identified my goals...at least once. I've paid off credit cards...and then charged them up again. How do you define investment, exactly? And how can I establish a strategy to pay off student loans when I'm still accumulating them? Oh, but I have traveled! Check!