Opinions
 | Birthday bumps |
Every now and then I am reminded of my imminent turn closer to the magic number, 40. I have to say, it isn’t one of my favourite numbers. It doesn’t roll off the tongue smoothly like 30 does. But in 40’s defence, there are so many more party favours to be found that read Over The Hill. You see, 30-something birthdays don’t quite hold the same appeal as do 40+ birthdays – thus the lack of Lookey Lookey Look Who’s Turning Thirty party hats.
I celebrate the day of my birth on July 4 every year; it never changes. This year, it turned out to be a fantastic day, but it didn’t start out so well. It was a morning that saw drizzle and dreary, cloudy skies. As you can imagine, I was not a happy camper as the agenda for the day was a BBQ in my honour. But there were many hours left in the day for a positive turnaround. July birthdays are known to be the best. (That is my somewhat biased opinion). Mother Nature always works her hardest during this month. So it came as no surprise that at 11:00 a.m. the clouds parted and the sun shone brightly. “About time,” I thought to myself. 
I didn’t ask for anything this year. I don’t need anything. But I still got away with a good haul. I got something I really wanted but didn’t by any means need. Unselfishly, I knew the kids would love it. It’s a video game system that I won’t name, but it rhymes with cheX-box. Selfishly, I am forsaking the name only because I haven’t had the courage to take it out and show the kidlings yet, as I am secretly enjoying the gaming system after they go to bed. I also got a beauty of a camera lens to add to my collection. I’ve been eyeing one for a long time and finally bit the bullet. Now my photography equipment is complete, for now.
Birthdays are hit and miss with most people. To prove it, I did some research for this article – more than what I have in the past. (Those of you who read my column regularly know that I do absolutely no research.) My research involved asking people just one question: “Do you like to celebrate your birthday?”
I got a mixed bag of responses and I would like to share a couple of them with you right now. Please keep in mind that these responses will not be verbatim. Hey, it isn’t my fault I didn’t bring my voice recorder or a notepad. As I told you research isn’t one of my strong suits. (Refer to any of my university papers and you’ll quickly be impressed by my lack of research skills.)
This one was the response of my six year old: “I like my birthday. When is my birthday? Dad, can I get the Bumblebee Transformer mask? The cake you got me last year was good. Can I go swimming?”
As you can see, it was an honest response where he was able to throw in a compliment, 20 questions and his current wants. As I recall, I remember my sister mentioning that I too liked to ask many questions when I was his age, so I can see where he gets it from.
The next person to share her comment was a beautiful person living gloriously in her golden years. She shared with me that she hasn’t celebrated her birthday in very long time.
“When I was younger, yes, I always wanted to have a small party with close friends and family.” A slight pause and grin comes across her face as she continues, “There was a time when I turned 49 or 50 when my grandson asked me how old I was, I in turn asked him how old he thought I was. His response was ‘100 grandma!’ That was the last birthday I had with family,” she said with a laugh.
Dale manages the communications department in a Winnipeg school division and just decided that after a quick trip to the mall, will not be buying the Bumblebee Transformers mask. Too expensive. Sorry kiddo.