it's your birthday, it's your birthday!! (cue incongruent but earnest white rapping)

He's not sure which to open. What came first, the chicken or the egg?

And the tiniest present came last!

I also tried to surprise him by entering a photo into the art auction 140hours. Here's how successful my surprise was:

me: "So can you send me a high-res version of that red photo with the starfish?"

him: "sure, why?"

me: "um. I just need it, that's all."* (*I suck at lying)

him (curiosity piqued): "For what?"

me (stalling): "Just to try an experiment."

him (Jedi radar instantly lasers into my brain, dismantling flimsy hidden motive): "You're not putting it in that art auction, are you?"* (the thing I have been talking about nonstop for 2 weeks .) (Note to self: that was not great forethought for the reconnaissance birthday mission.)

me (instantly caving): "um. Yes."

Anyway, here's the photo, online:

(visit auction)

Brittle stars on top of a brilliant red sponge

"Earth and sea are polar opposites. The Mayan pyramids were devoured by the jungle, a relentless verdant wave of plant life. In the sea, the roles of plants and animals are inverted; animals cover all. Everything you see in this image is an animal. The red background is a sponge, the multi-armed creatures are brittle stars, and everything else is coral in its diverse forms, from rocklike to delicate fernlike structures.

"The animals in this photo were found on the hull of a large tropical wreck at a depth of 80 feet. The brilliant colors are not normally visible; at this depth, the color becomes a drab camouflage unless illuminated with manmade light. The inverse nature of land and sea is complete; neon colors become uniform shades of obscure blue."
(see Dan's blog-->)

The auction ends tomorrow, but the birthday celebration shall last the rest of the year. :)