Monday Musings...
Well, here it is, birthday number FIFTY-NINE...!
And I'm not the ONLY one celebrating today, although aside from the cats, it's pretty much a "solo-act" for me most of the day.
Wifey returns to school TODAY, of all days (as do the kids, the parents are very happy - and headache medicine stocks take a nosedive,because they're not being bought in such large quantities as they were when SUMMER began...lol)
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*** I get to share my birthday with such folks like:

-- Claude Debussy - composer


-- Dorothy Parker - author

-- John Lee Hooker - blues guitarist
-- Ray Bradbury - author

-- H. Norman Schwarzkopf - U.S. general




-- Cindy Williams - actress

















-- Giada DeLaurentiis - chef & resident cooking channel "hottie"
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*** And my "horoscope" goes something like THIS:
(gonna be a LOT of eye-rolling HERE, trust me)
Leos born on August 22 are thoroughbreds.
(some mornings I feel like the jockey's been using the whip TOO damn much, too)
They have good looks ( I could argue that one), personal charm, and plenty of class (up to TEN periods a day in high school...lotta class).
There is a certain instability in their personality that makes them intriguing.
(and downright scary when pissed off)
High-strung and somewhat nervous, they thrive on attention.
(Don't want attention on my block - just wanna be left alone)
You should embrace: Good attitude, belief in the future, stamina
You should avoid: Inner fears, pettiness, moodiness
Friends and Lovers
Unlike most Leos, August 22 natives don't have a lot of "people" skills.
They don't make friends easily but are intensely loyal to the ones they have.
Love relationships can be immensely complicated for these individuals.
They are critical by nature (Gee, 'ya THINK???) -- a trait that can work against them at times.
Once they learn to be more trusting and tolerant, their love life is sure to improve.
Children and Family
There are strong ties between August 22 individuals and their parents, even if the relationship is overshadowed by conflict and controversy in later years. Because of the dynamic characterizing the relationship with their own parents, they don't have a great deal of confidence in their parenting abilities. This changes when they have an opportunity to grow.
Health
Although minor ailments such as allergies or nervous stomach may merely be symptomatic of their generally high-strung nature, it's important that they take steps to improve their stamina and physical well-being.
(Don't really want to move to TIBET these days)
Career and Finances
August 22 natives need to come to grips with their own talents and abilities.
They can benefit from the help and direction of a mentor who steers them during the early part of their career.
(Had plenty, and damn fine ones, too)
Money management is not their strong suit.
(Excuse me??? I'm no damn liberal here)
These people have a hard time keeping track of their spending habits.
(Well, that DOES explain Obamaessiah)
Dreams and Goals
Before they can reach their goals, August 22 individuals need to learn to believe in themselves.
This should not be a problem since they have so much going for them.
(...like what? Good shooting skills?)
Yet it often takes the personal validation of a close friend, family member, or colleague to make them see what is so obvious to everyone else -- that they have talent.
=========================================== *** Amazing when you're like FIVE, you don't even think of stuff like this...or for THAT matter, that far into the future.
And yet, you can often remember with some level of clarity birthdays that happened that long ago.
Lots of folks say "Hell, it's just a number", and I count myself among that throng.
The actual numeric value assigned to your age isn't the troubling thing, though... It's the FACT that you definitely have a lot more years BEHIND you, than IN FRONT of you.
Now THAT will bring one to a sobering realization of one's MORTALITY.
Dorian Gray, we're not (and given HIS life, we probably wouldn't wish to be).
I like to think that it's not so much my 59th "birthday", but rather the 19th ANNIVERSARY of my 40th birthday.
And unlike Jack Benny, I didn't permanently turn 39 WHEN I reached 40.
Every day we wrestle with our mortality, as soon as we wake up (which when you get older becomes a real blessing in and of itself...lol)
The slightest misstep on our part, or a stupid move by someone else can bring to an end our lives, and yet we move FORWARD.
We could fall down the stairs, have a stroke or heart attack, get hit by a drunk (or texting) driver, choke on a morsel fo food, or even (as does happen with eerie regularity in my part of the ghettohood)...get SHOT DEAD.
And still, rather than bar ourselves behind well-locked doors, we go out and get set doing that which needs getting done.
If we were to worry and fret over EVERY single thing that could possibly bring us harm, NONE of us would ever venture outside again. That wouldn't work out too well for society in general.
Life for us would become so many "shadows on the back of the cave wall", as it were.
(and would not be MY "first choice" either)
Yeah, 59...it's just a number.
Some are keen to point out that: "You're only as old (or young) as YOU FEEL."
Truth be told, there are days I feel like 25 again, while other days, I feel older beyond my years.
Depends on many things., age being one of them.
The mind is more willing these days than the body...it comes with the territory.
Like anything in life...parts "wear out", or don't move as easily as they used to.
With a car, the solution is simple:
Get your butt to an Auto-Zone store (or to a mechanic) and swap out the bad or failed parts for new ones, and change the oil every 2000 miles to keep what parts are still good slipping off of one another.
With us, it's a bit more "complex".
We can't just nip over to a "HUMAN-ZONE" store and buy up a bunch of replacement parts for OURSELVES.
We can go to a doctor, but as I love to point out to Mrs. Bobby G:
"Going to a doctor is like going to a hair salon...once they get you inside the first time, you HAVE to keep coming back for TOUCH-UPS"...LOL
(I know, I dated a hairdresser a long time ago...and frequenting doctors as much as I did as a child, I liken any such experience these days to having my testicular area pounded flat with a dead-blow hammer...it's that much "fun")
Interesting thing about aging, like I mentioned Friday about "change" in our lives...we ADAPT.
We learn to live WITH whatever impediment comes at us, and still...we move FORWARD.
We may someday need a cane (or walker), or require assistance breathing, and definitely need help with seeing and/or hearing.
We adjust our lives accordingly when this occurs.
Remember all the times we "punished" our bodies growing up?
The falls from the bikes, skateboards, or even wagons?
What about the plethora of skinned knees and elbows from "sliding home", or tripping over our own feet, because we were "in too much of a hurry", as Mom used to chide?
How about a broken bone or two when we fell out of that tree, or the sprained ankle we got when we jumped down from someplace a little higher than we thought?
ALL that (and much more) comes back to haunt us as we get older. Call them "reminders" of a time when we believed we were all invincible.
We all used to think that way, and sadly, some think they still are well into adulthood.
You don't get to be my age without learning some stuff along the way, that's for sure.
There are a few things I know I miss nowadays...
I miss the ability to "play"...as a youngster...like kids at the playground on the swings or sliding board.
Who would have thought that such a "trivial" (in our older minds) activity as those would be so damn much fun?
And with today's society, we dare not sit at the park and WATCH kids playing in the manner we used to...we'd be arrested for mental molestation, or other ludicrous crap some asshat manufactures, thanks to all the pedophiles out there, making life crappy for normal folks that enjoy watching kids play and remembering what it USED to be like.
I miss the INNOCENCE that comes with early youth...the child that believes there is SO much good in the world because they have not been exposed to the seamier side of life yet. The child who can see beauty and newness in everything he or she touches, sees, or hears.
Yeah, I miss those things.
It's not that we've become callous as we grew up...we might have developed a keen sense of awareness, tinged with bit of cynicism, all due to REALITY, which becomes our new (and ever-present) playmate, supplanting that teddy bear we cuddled as a child.
Were things better when we were all young?
I'd like to think so, and for the reasons I mentioned.
We didn't have to worry about finances, or really much of anything, except perhaps what time it was ("It's Howdy-Doody Time, Kids"), or whether Mom was going to make us eat our vegetables (they're good for you - make you grow up BIG and STRONG)
Got news for Mom...they LIED to her.
Many I knew that always ate their veggies turned out to be liberal-ass hippies and started SMOKING those "veggies" instead...LOL
So, I'm kinda glad I missed THAT boat.
Still...it's "just a number", right?
Only 59 years old...say it FAST enough, and it hardly matters one bit.
Yeah, it's definitely "autumn"...no more summertime in my life.
But that's OK...it was a damn nice summer.
Besides, fall is a much more beautiful time of "year", however fleeting it might be...very colorful and festive.
And I will move forward, as long as my Creator will allow it...as will we all.
*** Today will be a day when I make myself a huge breakfast sandwich with egg, bacon, sausage, ham and cheese on a roll, and later on, a wonderful (and personal favorite of mine) dinner "cooked" by Mrs. Bobby G. (Chinese in fact from the "DROOLING PANDA", or whatever the name of that place is she gets takeout from), accompanied by a nice ICE COLD Guinness (or several), and topped off with birthday cake, freshly purchased (two days before).
Add that to the Sunday dinner I made yesterday - Roast beef (with carrots) and shells and cheese cassarole - like mac and cheese w/o the "mac", but WITH well, shells... (duh)!
None of which is pre-made, but cooked by yours truly....(yummy).
Yeah, life's not that bad some days...even at MY age.
And that is reason enough to keep on keeping on.
Be well, make a difference to someone today, and...
Stay safe out there, America.