Tomorrow is my birthday, though I won't be divulging exactly which birthday it is, other than mine... Suffice it to say, it's a larger number birthday than I care to think about...
Once you reach a certain age, birthdays are no longer enjoyable, save for the fact that you get presents. At some point, it's no longer exciting and you no longer look forward to milestones. It's not like when you're a teen and looking forward to 18 because you'll officially be an adult and no one can push you around anymore, or like when you're a young adult and are looking forward to turning 21 because you can legally drink alcohol. Actually, that's pretty much the last milestone, unless you look forward to 25 so you can rent a car and car insurance rates drop drastically... I don't know anyone that looks forward to that... In any case, that's pretty much it. It's not as if anyone ever says, "I'm turning 40, I'll officially be over the hill, whoo-hoo!" or, "I'm turning 50, I'll be a half century old, go me!" However, I'm assuming birthdays do get exciting again once you're really up in age, but for a different reason. One would think that you'd be excited celebrating your 90th birthday because you're actually still here and not 6 feet under like other people you know...
The timeline of aging...
For years, people have been telling me, "Age is just a number..." I always had a hard time buying that... Oh, I suppose to a degree it is true. The number age you are doesn't necessarily dictate your behavior. I'm a prime example of that. On a good day, mentally, I feel 16. On other days... about 6. Sometimes it's more like 60. So it seems that the old adage is true. But, no matter how old you feel mentally or physically, that number is still staring you in the face and, to a certain point, dictating how you must behave. Think about it, how often do you condemn someone who is in their 40s or 50s for behaving like a teen? Society deems it as shameful that someone of such an advanced age should behave as if they were young. Never mind that fact that the person may indeed feel mentally young... Society doesn't care how young you feel. If you are middle aged, you should act middle aged. In this respect, the old adage is false. I suppose it depends on how you look at it...
Speaking of age... A few years ago, I decided that, instead of telling people how old I was or telling them what year I was born in, that I was going to tell them by way of song how old I was. For example, I've been telling people I came out the same year as the song "Brother Louie". Most people don't even know what song I'm talking about let alone what year it came out, so I'm usually safe and people don't know how old I am. However, thanks to this YouTube video, everyone will know because it's plainly printed on the label...
What's even scarier, I actually own the 45RPM of this song. It even has the same, odd, Kama Sutra label... Wow, that really makes me feel pretty old, to be honest.
Jazzman, take my blues away...
I don't have a very good view on birthdays... I don't like a fuss being made and I never had. Maybe I never will...
The only thing to look forward to is getting a present and going to dinner at my favorite restaurant (a Japanese steak house) and gorging myself on my favorite dishes.
So, in closing, I leave you with these funky jazz frogs and these words:
Louie, Louie, Louie, Lou-eee
Louie, Louie, Louie, Lou-eye
Louie, Louie, Louie, Lou-eee
Louie, Louie you're gonna cry...
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