Cloud, seen here modeling the Birthday Book.

Someone gave me a book many, many years ago called The Birthday Book. Inside was one page devoted to every day of the year which included a personality breakdown, as well as a listing of Vices, Virtues, and Verdict. It’s fun, I like it.

My favorite sentence on the March 16 page is, “Yet despite their intellectual focus, they never lose their capacity for hedonistic behavior.”

This is listed under virtues.

More on that later.

This one is going to be shorter because it’s my birthday, the weather is decent so I’d like to get outside, and my best friend from New Orleans is flying in this afternoon. We’ve known each other for thirty-five years and haven’t seen each other since the Before Times. So, here are a few bullet points from the other side of forty-five:

Things that you do to your body over and over leave a mark, the good things and the bad things, for better and for worse.
Sometimes it’s hard work, sometimes it’s genetics. This is starting to become more obvious. Take time to appreciate any place your genetics land on the plus side.
It’s starting to take longer to heal, but that doesn’t mean healing is impossible. It does mean that taking care of your body isn’t ‘wussing out.’ You have nothing to prove and other things you want to do with it.
If you want to do something, do it. It’s not too late. And it might be really fun.
If you’re not getting paid, and you’re not having fun, it’s time to stop doing the thing. It doesn’t matter if it was your dream ten, fifteen, twenty years ago. Your dreams can change.
Remember when you were a little kid, and you met someone new and just said, “wanna come to my house and play?” You can still do that. If you meet a new person, and you like them, you can say, “Hey, this has been fun. Let’s get a drink/coffee sometime.” Then pull out your phone and connect in one of the myriad of ways. The worst that happens is they never make time. But you’ll be surprised.
Appreciate your old friends. You’ve been around through all of these versions of each other.

She just got here, y’all. Look at the present she got me. You can guess what the part I’m holding says.

Back to hedonism. As a person who likes to be healthy and active, and as a former fitness professional who’s acutely aware of what things like booze, sugar, and staying up late can do to to the body, I find I’m constantly weighing two options: stay alive longer with a working vehicle v. enjoying being alive and the moment I’m in. Especially on days like today, where sugar, booze, and staying up late are almost a forgone conclusion. Tomorrow is not a guarantee, but I’d like to keep the odds in my favor.

So I definitely think I’ll be having some wine, some sugar, and staying up a little later talking with a friend I haven’t seen in years, who’s been in my life for quite a while. The next day, I’ll be welcoming both old and new friends into my home for the first big After Times party. I’ll probably enjoy that day too.

A certain amount of Hedonism is necessary to live a full life. If you’re so inclined, raise a glass, or have some cake for me this weekend. (Hey, it’s a better excuse than St. Patrick’s Day, in my opinion.)

Seven Bullets for Forty-Five Years Around the Sun