There were plenty of things to be expected during Animalia's 2023 Birthday Celebrations, such as the enormous cake, specials at the Meat Market, Claw Club, etc., "birthday conversions", and similar things. But there were plenty of things that were completely unexpected: sometimes serious, sometimes amusing, sometimes shocking, but always different.
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For an example of something serious, more and more Russians and Ukrainians were immigrating to Animalia and its colonies. While the usual internet xenophobes and weirdoes were making their usual noises, nobody really batted an eyelid anymore. However, there was one unexpected side effect: there were so many Russians undergoing conversion that there were plans for a new Russian colony that wasn't tied to the Cenozoic era.
However, due to the ongoing conflict, and what might happen afterward, it was remaining on the backburners for the time being. On the other hand, it would give plenty of time to get most of the finer details nailed down for said colony.
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In an example of something funny, a large quantity of illegal steroids was seized at Animalia International Airport by TSA Agents, partly due to Pride Month in Animalia. What was funny was the way they were being transported: in bottles labeled as sex lubricant. Part of the reason why it was funny was the number of PG-13+ memes that resulted from the TSA Announcement, most of which were about how said steroids would be "administered".
However, there was an official post on the website that did confirm something unexpected: Many of the male gay community that had joined Animalia had done so to both get bigger muscles and heal the damage from steroid abuse. Another surprising post reported that one clear side effect of steroid abuse was only discovered during the pandemic: it compromised immune systems leaving them vulnerable to COVID-19.
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What was probably the most shocking thing was a discovery that was announced during Miles' coverage of Aeaea. One of Miss Juliet's new students was swimming off the coast of Aeaea when he discovered and reported to the archaeological authorities (who had been mainly focused on the ruins that were found on Aeaea) what looked like "metal biscuits with funny ears". When he lead them to where he spotted them, it turned out what he had found was a late Bronze Age shipwreck. This would prompt an official office to be opened on Aeaea to salvage the wreck and its treasures, and it would help bring tourists to Aeaea who weren't interested in the sleazier parts of Classical Era.
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Altogether, there were plenty of surprises during Animalia's Birthday Celebrations that could be considered "birthday gifts", after a fashion. However, there were still three more years to go before Animalia could host its biggest celebration yet.