Birthdays

Birthdays! I love other people's birthdays. I love it when close friends or family members notch another year in the belt. I am not a fan of recognizing my own, but since it falls on a holiday of sorts, I am all too aware that circle just got a little tighter every year. Facebook helps me notice birthdays of friends now. What a fine enterprise, if I only remember to remove the birth date from my profile.

People not born on holidays, and not in my Facebook friend list, could miss my recognition and cheers because all those dates are so hard to remember. I'm very bad with the details in my e-mail account files. I have the e-mail addresses, maybe a couple of phone numbers, but no real personal information stored. I was better when I maintained an old address book. After years of dwindling contact with most of the old address people I ditched it. Yes, I am remorseful. Now I am addicted to e-addresses pretty exclusively, such as they are.

I bring this up because my wife, who celebrates her birthday today, always challenges me on what the birth dates are for her parents. She gets to remember my dad on Halloween, and my sister on Earth Day. My sister was born in April on Easter Sunday, but might not have another Easter day as a birthday until after all of us are gathered. I am grateful to all those old hippies at the Whole Earth Catalog for choosing my sister's birthday to celebrate Earth Day. My oldest son was born on Easter Sunday. My youngest arrived a couple of days before Veteran's Day. Close enough to remember. At my advanced age holiday birth dates are best for me.

I love my in-laws. They are two of the best people I have met and know in my life. But, my wife always wins the bet on her parents. I need to get them on Facebook.