A Birthday Story

So, today I celebrate my forty-eighth birthday. Of course, as I get older, I have mixed feeling towards "my day". One one hand, it's a harsh reminder that I'm not getting any younger. And although I'm fortunate enough to still have the ability to do most of things that I could twenty-five years ago, I can't deny that it takes me a little longer and it hurts a little more to get them done.

One the other hand, birthdays can be uplifting as people will often take a moment out of their day to throw some birthday wishes your way. By wishing you a simple Happy Birthday, it's a confirmation that people are thinking of you. This morning, I was awoken by the vibrations of my cell phone on my nightstand as the Facebook birthday wishes came pouring in. Normally, I'm a little grumpy when I get woke up before the alarm clock. But on this particular morning, each new sound from the cell phone brought a new smile.

Birthday's can definitely have their advantages too. For instance, I'm off work today. I have several hours of yard work to do, which for some demented reason I actually find relaxing.  After this, I'm hoping to make an early check-in at Happy Hour. Now, when people realize it's your birthday, they instinctively want to buy you a drink. And since I wouldn't want to offend anyone, it's only right to accept their offer. I'll have the Dogfish Head 60-Minute IPA! Thank you....

And people will often give you a pass on your birthday. For example, if you get into heated exchange over the last box of Twinkies at Walmart, someone might be inclined to hurl a barrage of Jerry Springer-like insults your way. However, if you just say, "Come on man, it's my birthday!", somehow they'll naturally cut you some slack.

Sometimes, you can use birthdays to a spontaneous advantage. First off, I almost always take a vacation day from work on my birthday. Several years ago on this day, as Tina was getting ready to go to work, she said, "Hey Ken, you better get up!" Slowly waking  up and pulling myself out of bed, I informed her that I was off work.  As she prepared to head out the door, I told her that I was going to hook up with my old buddy, Rip, later for a few beers. She said, "Ok, that sounds good. You guys haven't seen each other in a while." Seizing the opportunity, I told her that we always tried to hook up on each each others birthdays to have a few celebratory drinks. At first, her face was highlighted with confusion. It was obvious that she had totally forgotten my birthday. She really felt bad and I told her that it was no big deal. But then, she said, "Go out and buy yourself something nice today. I don't care how much you spend." Cha-Ching!

Now, my first instinct was to go shopping for a new Corvette. But my conscience soon got the best of me and I realized that this would be border-line spousal abuse. So, I wound up buying a new guitar. I was happy, Tina was happy and Bill's Music House was happy.

Another little side story......Obviously, my birthday is May 17. When I was a kid, my idol was Oriole's legendary 3rd baseman, Brooks Robinson  Well, when I found out that Brooks' birthday was on May 18, I felt like I had missed the lottery by one number. I was actually very depressed over it. Then, I found out one of my schoolmates' birthday was on May 18. After all of these years, I can still remember that her name was Susan. A very nice girl, but her birthday would be a constant wedge in any potential friendship. I was so pissed because she didn't even like baseball. It seemed unfair and I was so jealous!

Birthdays are a common thread that we all share. In it's most basic sense, it's the day that we entered the world. In the traditional sense, it's a celebration of our existence in the world. No doubt, getting older has it's drawbacks. But, as my cousin Virginia would say, it sure beats the alternative.

Cheers!

kw