Thanks for the birthday message!
I haven't really been anywhere, so I guess I should be here more often!

It's true. My parents were both college teachers and we lived out in the country with horses and the whole bit. Great place to be a kid, but wouldn't go back to that for anything now...I'd be bored to death. My father did graduate work in Sri Lanka and converted years before I was born (I came along sort of late in my parents lives). It was strange because we were the only Buddhists around, so I honestly didn't discuss it much with others other than close friends. Living in relative isolation in the country helped too I guess. Buddhism isn't a "congregational thing where you have to go to a temple every week. We had our own meditation hall in our basement with an alter and all the fixings. The family that meditates together...

I have a couple.