43 ON MY SHOULDERS

You ever get those "birthday blues"? The day before my birthday I was feeling down. When asked what I wanted to do this year I finally replied "Stick around the house and have some fondue and drinks on the front porch." I woke up early the next morning to the comforting smell of my birthday cake baking and I KNEW it was going to be a great day. After getting the kids off to school Mary and I took a walk on my favorite beach. She spotted a cool piece of driftwood. She said that would be nice to have. I nodded in agreement and kept walking...then I stopped, turned around and figured "what the hell". We both grabbed an end and began the task of carrying then dragging it down the beach back to the truck. While driving back home I pictured that piece of driftwood sitting on the front porch with paints and brushes around it, and everyone taking a turn at painting something on it. I asked Mary what she thought of this idea and she said "It's your birthday". She suggested that we first paint it Periwinkle blue. Off to the hardware store I went. And with the blue paint drying, my birthday blues had evaporated. The rest of the day took on a life of it's own with a steady stream of friends and family stopping by and everyone taking a turn adding to the wondrous artwork that became possibly my best birthday yet! ENJOY THE PICTURES!