Birthday Blog

Happy Birthday Tom, Patricia and William!

The birthday got off to a much earlier start than I had anticipated. Cindy was awakened by some noise at 3:25 am and I had a hard time getting back to sleep.  By five however I was in a deep sleep and dreaming that I was in an elevator going up and I could hear the little bells going off as we passed each floor. Turns out it was an alarm that was going off, and neither Cindy nor I could figure out what alarm or why.  I have a little clock/ barometer/ humidity and temperature thing from LL Bean. It is meant for hiking I guess and I didn’t even know it had an alarm, but the cleaning lady must have pressed some button yesterday as she dusted the night table and she set the alarm.  There have been a great many magic mornings on my birthday, especially when I was working and had some decent money to spend and Cindy and I both had flexible schedules. I loved it when I would wake up on a luxury cruise ship somewhere at sea and the only decisions I had to make were when to start drinking and what to order for meals. I still revel in memories of waking up in a grand hotel in an exotic city where we would meet friends for three-hour lunches and then nap before four-hour dinners. Today was not one of those magic mornings!

I never really got back to sleep so I was up with Cindy getting her breakfast and coffee as she got ready for work.  Even that was a comedy of errors since she had planned on going in late so that we could have a quiet breakfast, but since she was already up we decided it would be easier for her to go at the regular time since it was snowing and I didn’t want her to have to drive.  So, she grabbed her to-go cup of coffee and transferred her breakfast to a plastic bowl and was out the door in record-breaking time.  I tidied up the kitchen and made an executive decision to go right back to bed and start the morning over again!  The second awakening was so much more civil and relaxed, far more in keeping with a birthday morning.

I took a long and very careful walk down to the frozen Moscow River.  The combination of frigid temperatures after a lovely day yesterday refroze everything into a messy and really slick surface. The addition of a light coating of snow helped to decrease the friction and there were lots of folks splattered all over the sidewalks.  I noticed a lot of police and security teams at all the public buildings and Metro stations. Seems lots of riots have taken place this week all due to an incident at a football game on Sunday.  Lots of thugs are using the incident as an excuse to riot.  The mayor has said he has had enough.

This walk, which normally takes me about forty minutes stretched into ninety, but I got home safe and sound and none the worse for wear. During the walk I scouted out potential restaurants for tonight’s dinner. Some looked good but they were way too expensive; others looked okay but I knew we would have a mediocre meal with mediocre wines and it would also be expensive.  Additionally, the thought of having to bundle up like an Eskimo, delicately dance over slippery sidewalks and roads, and then sit and have some kind of celebratory dinner with hiking boots on, had no appeal to me.  We’ll save the grand celebration for Paris.

While I’m sure I’m supposed to have lots of insight and words of wisdom now that I’m sixty-five, it all eludes me. I really feel like I’m just a day over sixty-four and I didn’t have anything then either.  I do know that I’m going to drink better wines, perhaps not as much, but certainly better.  I know that I need to introduce more Champagne into my diet, and I would love to get my hands on some black market caviar, but so far I’m striking out.  I think I’m going to have to get more engaged in some type of work because with the bad weather now upon us, my options for external activities have diminished.  When I think about it, I’m a pretty lucky guy. I’ve got Cindy, which is swell, I’ve good health, which is remarkable and I’ve got a loving family scattered about - but with technology, they all seem to be here whenever we need to communicate.

And finally, in preparation for my sixty-sixth birthday, I’ve finally found a destination that will light up my life!  What an exciting opportunity for tourism, one that would never have occurred to me.  Will you join me???

Best wishes to all, Cindy and Wm

From CC: It makes me sad that Wm’s birthday isn’t a bit more fun, but I’m trying!  This morning after I got to school I sent him an email thanking him for making MY day so nice.  I’ll make it up to him soon.