I think that I may be getting old.  As evidence, I offer the fact that this past Father’s Day I received socks and a ties and I was happy about that.  A younger man might have wanted something more exciting like a 40” high-def plasma screen TV, or a laptop computer with built-in wireless networking, or a video iPod with the accessory kit.  No me.  No sir.  Who needs all that high tech gear when you can look stylish at work and feel comfortable in your shoes?

Like most parents I’ve often found myself on the receiving end of random acts of gift giving from my children.  It starts with the toddlers’ instinct for generosity.  Their bighearted nature is matched only by their complete lack of understanding of monetary systems and relative value. (Full Text)

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I’ve seen a disturbing number of significant family birthdays and anniversaries this year. My youngest son turned eighteen, my oldest son turned twenty-one, and I turned old. My wife, annoyingly, has remained as youthful and beautiful as ever. She claims this to be the result of clean living, a good attitude and just a tiny bit of help from her personal assistants Miss Clairol and Mary Kay. I’m thinking of checking the attic for a portrait. On the other hand, maybe I won’t. When I’m eighty and she still looks twenty-five, I’ll be the envy of the rest of the nursing home.

I am reminded, that birthdays and anniversaries are the mile markers of life.

My own birthday doesn’t bother me. Through years of careful inattention I have developed the ability to deny that I’m getting older even though I had to stop checking the “35-44″ box on surveys last year. As far as aging is concerned, I’ve moved into the state of denial and haven’t left a forwarding address. Except, when my children have birthdays, I do the math and realize I must be older than I thought.

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Like this excerpt? Want the whole story? Listen to the audio version by clicking the ‘Play’ button at the top of this post. If you’d rather read it, you can find the full text at http://myfavoriteshortcomings.wordpress.com/2009/07/25/mile-marker-forty-five/

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Notes:

• Thanks again to the Heiler family for linking off to this site in the blog.  I really appreciate it.
• A big “Hello” to my new Twitter friends @Sam55510 and @Meike_Schneider
• Congratulations to Alex at the New Forest Podcast for hitting episode 50!
• And, finally, I’d like to encourage you once again to join me as a listener (and, if possible, supporter) of Decoder Ring Theater.

Actually, no child asks that. Which is a real pity because at least you could look up the answer in any conveniently handy book on quantum physics. Instead, your children will test the limits of your understanding with seemingly innocent questions.

When my oldest was three, I introduced him to the Disney version of Sleeping Beauty. We’d just gotten to the part where Malificent crashes the party. As an adult, it was easy to see why she hadn’t been invited; She was bad mannered and about as much fun as dermatologist at a tanning center. My son asked, “Why is she being a bad guy?”

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Like this excerpt? Want the whole story? Listen to the audio version by clicking the ‘Play’ button at the top of this post. If you’d rather read it, you can find the full text at http://myfavoriteshortcomings.wordpress.com/2009/06/20/twenty-thousand-questions/

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Notes:

• Special thanks to Twitter Pal Ogre_Kev for “multiasking”
• Thanks, too to CoolB for the congratulatory note.
• Celine and Chloe are the talented daughters of Sam “The Money Geek” Fawaz
• I’m on Facebook at this link.