The Urban Pantheist

Sunday I joined friends I rarely see to celebrate Christian's entry into 40s-hood.

My birthday is next Friday. I like celebrating my birthday, but I don't like going out to restaurants/movies/etc on Fridays because everyone else is out there and I'm avoiding them. I was thinking of celebrating on Sunday by going to Flann O'Brien's for brunch, but we will have a new foster puppy then and everything is going to require 2 extra steps of planning to do anything. Maybe I should invite a couple friends over to watch a movie in my basement?

Jim may not be too excited about his portrait, but Alex liked it. It's by a fantastic artist who happens to be a friend as well, Mark Reusch

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Today is Alexis' birthday! We are going to celebrate by getting Indian Food from the new place in Roslindale square. There's a lot of buzz around it, because that neighborhood somehow didn't have an Indian restaurant before. It's two neighborhoods away from us, but has become the closest Indian place to us (we at anniversary dinner at Himalayan Bistro, which is Nepalese--close enough if you judge by Yelp). We seem so busy so much of the time and both crave quality moments together. The winter is so difficult with the dark and the cold and the depression but the veil is lifting and it's spring next week. We're going away together on a family trip in April and we'll get to have closeness together, warmth and sun.

Ah, yes, day off together on the wife's birthday.

Went to a new friend's birthday party, one of four friends of mine whose birthday is the eleventh of September, and knew no one there, and was the only one present without children. (What I mean is, I felt really really awkward.) When the alarm went off I told her I was going to take my picture, did it quickly and put my camera away. Never checked the pic which was wildly overexposed due to being left on manual exposure. I balanced the levels best I could and stripped the color out. Now it looks like an old snapshot found loose fallen from a forgotten album (I hope).

People who I do know, and also don't have kids did arrive, so I felt much less awkward and had a nice time.

Born on the Fourth of July isn't just a movie title, it's the coincidental truth for a whole bunch of people in my life.  For starters, my friends Kendra, and Brooke, who don't read this, but if they happen to--HAPPY BIRTHDAY KENDRA!!  HAPPY BIRTHDAY BROOKE!!  Brooke owns a small motorboat, and historically takes it out onto the Charles on her birthday with a friend or two, and watches the fireworks in her honor.

For the second time, I learned that a coworker's father had today as a birthday.  Not a tremendous coincidence, but I got a feeling of de ja vu when I heard myself saying, 'MY dad's birthday is the fourth of July, too!'

In 1934 on this date my Dad was born.  Thirty-five years and about a month later I came along.  I consider my dad to be my chief role model, and  something very much like a friend.  We have been summer traveling companions for the past eight years, and he's brought me to Rio, The Galapagos, Costa Rica, Alaska, Hawaii, and Easter Island.  We get along better than many fathers and sons do, and since my brother also has a good relationship with him, I'll give Dad the credit.  He's wise and patient and full of good humor.  This year he finished his fiftieth year of teaching (social studies, including American History, which makes the 'born on the fourth of July' thing kind of cute) and he has no plans to stop.  People ask him why he hasn't retired and it's like they've asked him why he hasn't had his hands amputated.  Why the hell would I do that?  He loves his work, he loves his students, and he loves New England.  He loves my mother with a devotion that other husbands should take to heart.  Despite the fact that he is unable to take care of her so she lives in a nursing home, and  she hasn't recognized him in over a decade, he still sees her every day that he can, sometimes for hours holding her hand as she sleeps, sometimes twice a day.

He also doesn't read this,  unless my brother or I show it to him.  He's got better things to do than to figure out the internet.
I love him very much, and am proud to call him Father.  Well, I just call him Dad.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DAD!!!

Behind the cut are the pictures taken with my camera the night of my birthday, mainly for the benefit of those who were there. (But hey, if you weren't there, and want to take a look, go right ahead :) )
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These are the pictures that were taken with Amy's camera, and my camera, by the assembled drunks at Lila's birthday party at the Model. Probably if you weren't there these won't be very interesting, but we had fun.

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Highlights of yesterday

Finally got around to transposing writing from paper notebook into the computer, with an eye on (*gasp*) producing another issue of my zine (I do a zine?)

( Cut for mundane details, photographs. )