I’m writing this on my 53rd birthday. I am taking the day off from work and will be spending most of it at home alone. I do plan to get out and visit a music store later and will spend time with family tonight. It will be an enjoyable day. I wanted to take a little time this morning to look back at some of the places I have spent my birthday. Here is a very incomplete list and some notes about each one.
- The front porch of 229 W. Vine Street in Alamo, Tennessee. I remember this birthday party mainly because of home movies. This birthday is also memorable because the birthday cake had green colored coconut and marshmallow bunnies on it. One of the curses of having a birthday around Easter.
- The backyard of 221 W. Vine Street in Alamo, Tennessee. Soon after my sister was born, my family moved next door. Most of my prime birthday years were spent at this address. The birthday parties were held in what seemed to be an enormous backyard and and most of the Hot Wheels cars that I received as birthday gifts were raced down the hall of that house.
- Sitting in front of the stereo listening to albums received as birthday gifts. Some of the more memorable albums where The Carpenters Close to You, The Rutles Soundtrack album and Elton John’s Greatest Hits.
- Village Inn Pizza in Jackson, Tennessee. On my 17th birthday, they had a band playing in the back room. It seems like all of my best friends where there. They bought me a cake. The band sang “Paradise By The Dashboard Light”. When the female singer sang to me “We were barely 17 and we were barely dressed” I came out of my shirt.
- Harris Hall, Lambuth College. This is where I put together the train set that I bought for myself on my 20th birthday. Yes, a train set on my 20th birthday.
- Guitar Center, San Antonio, Texas. My mother-in-law lives in San Antonio. in the past we have spent several spring breaks there. Several years, my birthday has been during these spring break trips. I always enjoy trips to any music store. My son and I were dropped off at this store while the rest of the family went shopping elsewhere. We didn’t buy anything that day, bur we had a great time.
- A pool hall in Atlanta, Georgia. I was on a business trip in Atlanta. This was at a time when I was watching a lot of NBA basketball and I would have loved to have gone to a Hawks game. We had arrived in Atlanta late in the afternoon but we would have had time to get tickets for the game that night. But the guy that I was travelling with was really into play pool and we ended up in a pool hall. I played a little pool and watched the game on TV.
- Doctor’s office in Jackson, Tennessee. 10 years ago today, I went with my mom to her very last doctor’s appointment. This would also be the last day that I saw her alive. She didn’t get a good report and would pass away the next day. A trip to the doctor with a sick parent is not an ideal way that anyone would want to spend their birthday. I can’t think of anyone else that I would have wanted to be with that day. I cherish the time I got to spend with my mom that day. We may have lost her on the following day, but she is alive in my heart even today.