September 29, 2006
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It’s happened. As of today I am officially 48 years old. And as the old joke goes; if I’d known I was going to live this long I would have taken better care of myself.
So, what have I learned in 48 years on this planet? Probably much less than other people my age, but I’ll share a few things I’ve learned along the way:
- Sitting on the tailgate of a pickup truck when it’s going 70 mph is a lot of fun, but it ceases to be fun if you fall off. Trust me on this one.
- You should never feed a cat bubble gum.
- You should always try to do the right thing, because I’ve discovered that doing the wrong thing is actually a whole hell of a lot more work, and it’s never as much fun as you thought it was going to be.
- Following a quart sized container of Buttery Nipples with shots of Jägermeister is a really, really, BAD idea.
- You can’t bullshit your children. You can try, but they see right through it. So just give up and be yourself.
- Never wear red underwear with white linen slacks.
- No matter what it is, if you sacrifice a relationship for it, it’s not worth it.
That’s pretty much it…the sum total of all that I’ve learned. So now it’s time to take stock of my life:
Well…I’m married to this hottie who also happens to be the world’s coolest person:
My brilliant son is happily married to the perfect woman and is teaching at Baylor:
My beautiful step-daughter is happily married and is teaching elementary school music in Indiana:
And having Jamie, the wonderful new addition in our home, is keeping me young:
So what can I tell you after taking stock of my life?
…I don’t think it gets any better than this.
Comments (36)
Happy Birthday.
ps.Didn’t you learn amything about the expiration date on milk being there for a reason?
*giggles*. I’d like to be a fly on the wall when you get that life lesson…
Happy Birthday! What a gorgeous family you have, you lucky man!
And don’t forget, if you’re not gonna eat it, refrigerate it. And Gallagher says that once you pass 40, don’t put your butt over your head.
Happy Birthday, Mark! You certainly have a lovely family, of whom to be very proud. I guess your birthdate has been on your site, but I must not have noticed. I thought you were more MY age, lol! That’s YOUNGER, buddy, YOUNGER, although just by a few short years, lol! I hope you will feel this reflective and happy about this date in two short years! Eek! I’m dreading that one!
Kathi
happy birthday, and good for you for knowing how blessed you are.
It can get better! Just wait till you get the Luby’s Discount!
(See my post for a real response.)
Happy Birthday. Geez, a man who adores his wife and children…..and makes sure the world knows it……..You have no idea how incredibly sexy that is!
Happy Birthday!! Yay, you’re older than me!! Not by much, but it seems I’m always surrounded by younger people than myself-even here oN xANGa. But you only have me beat by months.
BTW, I like your “after” better.
Happy Birthday! You are obviously very blessed!
How great is that… Happy Birthday.
Happy birthday! WTF are “Buttery Nipples?”
Oh, is that a personal question?
Two years before AARP hounds you…I mean, happy birthday!
Happy Birthday! I don’t know what Buttery Nipples are, but do they come in Margarine form?
Meeting you has been the hightlight of my summer…………which tells you what a miserable summer I had! No, seriously folks, I think Mark is really, really, really funny and should be syndicated and we should have to PAY to read him. He is so damn funny.
Happy Birthday, its nice your son wrote such a great post in your honor.
A very beautiful family.
I wish you a very Happy Birthday !! As to your son’s post ? The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree… you must be terribly proud of him.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY! Wow! 48! Your love for your family shines through! Keep enjoying them…you are blessed!
Happy Birthday (yesterday…). Hope it was a great one.
Happy Birthday Mark! I hope it was a great one!
You are how old? You’ll have to let me know what it’s like to be 48… (tee hee) You are a blessed mess – but at least you know it and admit to it!
Your whole fam damily is great – partly because of you and your generous heart – stay classy.
See ya soon!
Happy Birthday Mark!
Happy Birthday!
Happy belated birthday to you, happy belated birthday to you you are two years older than meeeee happy belated birthday to you.
Beautiful family …..
happy belated birthday, xanga friend!!! hope it was a great day…and it is followed by an amazing year
this means that this week is indeed full of birthdays of the world’s coolest birthday.
of course, i wouldnt say this if my birthday wasn’t tomorrow
You do have a beautiful family. Hope your birthday was a wonderful one.
hahah Lubys discount!!! I love it! And I must add Jagermeister with ANYTHING or after anything is a BAD idea….unless you have a cough or need your lungs cleared out.
And HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!
Happy Birthday! Just like George Bailey, you are the richest man in town.
… But most of all don’t forget the sunscreen!
with a quart of buttery nipples, I bet it is a happy birthday.
Happy Birthday. Just so you know, AARP has great discounts and a FABULOUS magazine
I just read an article that says that we may get to live to be 150 years old! So you are really still very young….not even middle aged, yet!
RYC: ‘Intestinal Blockage’??
Grizzy is always coming up with names he thinks would be good for a band..especially today’s bands….he saw one the other day and said they should be called ‘Painful Rectal Itch.’
Glad you liked my taste in music. People usually do. It was one of the best parts of my summer job at camp…opening the eyes of my teenage staff to some really GREAT music…or telling them what the song was about (you know, the great “American Pie” interp…or the incredible story behind “Abraham, Martin and John.”)
Happy Birthday! 48 is not bad. After the first 100 years you stop really noticing.
And BTW: Grizzy says he’s also partial to the name “Car Tow Dollies.”
You look much younger than 48! I heard 48 is the new 18- well I’m not sure if that’s right or not??
RYC: Thank goodness you finally switched phones…parents everywhere have control of their baby monitors again. However, I’m sure there’s probably at least 1 or 2 people who are disappointed.
But do wear some sort of underwear with white linen slacks. And I hope you had a very ahppy birthday, you old codger, you! (I’ll catch up to you in about 15 months.)
Happy Birthday to my favorite passing acquaintance.
Ed
Happy birthday, almost a week late!
Gosh, 48, eh? That’s still over 13 years away for me…..!! But since my 35th is coming up in the next few weeks, I’ll start compiling my list of what I’ve learned in my very long life.