Then and Now

Okay, okay, so it was my birthday.  I have been inundated with well-wishes, more than I ever expected, and I had a very special day yesterday when my sweetie came to have dinner with me.

The news is—I’m 61.

Damn.

Now, what follows is perhaps wanting in taste, but it’s my blog so if I want to do something like this, who’s to stop me?  Besides, it’s kind of interesting, at least to me.

Two pictures, the first shot by Donna back in 1981.  Then, after that, another shot the morning of my 61st birthday.  (I should’ve done something with my hair, yeah, but oh well.)

So, without further what have you, 1981:

Note the modest collection of books and records on the cabinet behind me. No, that wasn’t all we had, but I find it interesting that there was nevertheless room on the shelves.

Now, 2015:

Yeah, I am a bit vain.  But I work hard to earn it.  I never really think I do, so I labor under a bizarre mix of humility and pride that often results in odd manifestations.  But in this instance—and there may never be another one—I’m looking at that and thinking “Take that, 61!  Screw you!”

Been a hard few years now.  I had appendicitis a few years back, then this past year I had my right arm in a brace for months from a ruptured tendon.  Not to mention the usual assortment of annoyances and the fact that I’ve been running full-out now for like a decade,

But also a terrific few years. Good things have happened and most importantly I feel in a better place now than I have in a long time.

So I’m braggin’ a bit.  Soon enough there will be another post here and you can ignore this one, which, admittedly, is dubious at best, but hey, why not?

Still. After 34 years…not too shabby maybe?