CELEBRATIONS Age is no longer a grave concern for those reaching 30th birthday

Changing times bring a whole new way to mark the once-dreaded birthday.
KNIGHT RIDDER NEWSPAPERS
In the old days the 30th birthday often was viewed with a certain dread and secrecy. Single women fretted if they weren't yet attached. Men suffered over career accomplishments that didn't measure up to goals and dreams.
But today the passage has become cause for celebration equal to that once relegated to coming-of-age parties when celebrators could finally vote and legally imbibe, The New York Times reported recently. The events are sometimes elaborate and expensive, like weddings or reunions. A party for 100 friends? Sure. A week in Cancun. You bet.
These days marriage and children are frequently postponed well past 30, and people apparently crave a passage somewhere between school and a wedding, Gail Sheehy, author of "Passages: Predictable Crisis of Adult Life," told the Times, "Thirty is the new 22."
Marita Wesely-Clough, trend analyst for Hallmark Cards Inc., says two things are happening: Young people are growing up into worldly adults quickly. But at the same time, in this tough economy, many are moving back with their parents to save money in the years after college. As a result, "Thirty is like 21. They are being launched," she says.
Another factor is the post Sept. 11 attitude that time is short. "Make hay while the sun shines," Wesely-Clough says.
Hallmark sees testimony to the trend in the steady sale of 30th birthday cards this year. Although birth rates were down 16 percent between 1970 and 1973, the year this year's 30-year-olds-were born, the dip in 30th card sales is so small it's not discernible, says Rachel A. Bolton, public relations executive.