Wednesday, September 9, 2015

42 Thoughts On My 42nd Birthday

Today is my birthday. That means that 42 long years ago on this date my mother was wheeled into the hospital delivery room where I made my first appearance.

42 years ago.

Can I possibly be 42 years old?

Wasn't it just yesterday that I went to college and tried my first dorm room margarita?

Birthdays tend to make me wax philosophical. I'm feeling super reflective today. Nothing like mulling over your life and realizing that time is growing ever shorter. Here are 42 random thoughts and insights in celebration of the end of my 42nd year on Earth.

1. I'm not as young as I used to be. Recovery takes a bit longer than it did back in my younger years. That goes for injuries, exercise, and hangovers.

2. Quality trumps quantity in everything . . . friends, material possessions, life experiences, chocolate . . . but not bacon. More bacon = more happiness.

3. There is no better education than the one received outside the classroom.

4. "The more you love your decisions, the less you need others to love them." A much younger friend of mine recently said that. It's good stuff. I'm stealing it.

5. Perfection is an illusion. Besides, true beauty lies in the cracks and dents that create the uniqueness of imperfection.

6. Anything worth doing is worth overdoing. If you're going to spend your time, money, or energy doing something, then do it with gusto.

7. I will not bemoan my growing older, not everyone has the privilege (but I do reserve the right to complain about my thinning hair).

8. Yes, some things do come easy to some people, but talent doesn't always make up for a lack of hard work.

9. Most people are busy doing a lot of things, but few people actually accomplish very much.

10. Even at 42, there's little else funnier than a good fart joke.

11. Those aren't wrinkles. They're the memories of laughter and sunshine written on my face.

12. I feel much more confident in my own skin now than I did when I was younger. Which is weird considering how much I sometimes miss my 20 year-old body. I so didn't sufficiently appreciate it when I had it.

13. Forgiving yourself is about a million times harder than forgiving someone else . . . but it's probably a million times more important.

14. Happiness is a choice. You can choose to be happy in spite of your circumstances. Cupcakes help though.

15. Debt ruins lives. Avoid it if at all possible.

16. Trust your gut instincts. They are right most of the time.

17. Doing nothing doesn't prevent failure. It guarantees it.

18. Attempting to fold fitted sheets is a waste of precious time. Just ball those things up and throw them in the drawer.

19. Ditto on matching socks.

20. Learn how to properly throw a punch, because someday, somewhere, no matter who you are . . . you're going to want to punch something. You don't want to hurt yourself doing it.

21. Google wished me a "Happy Birthday" today. Where were you, Google, when I was writing all of those darned research papers in college? Too little too late, Google. Too little too late.

22. Read something everyday, because "a person who won't read has no advantage over the person who can't."

23. I still don't know what I want to be when I grow up.

24. I recently had a strong desire to go dancing, but then realized that I learned to dance in the 80s and would only make a fool of myself. Plus someone would probably YouTube it. I don't relish the thought of digitally recorded evidence.

25. "For better or for worse" are the most important, yet easily forgotten words that an individual can pledge. Love changes. It has highs and lows, dips and valleys. Don't give up during the low times. Things tend to cycle back around.

26. I'm not the same person I was in my twenties. I'm way cooler.

27. The best stress relief isn't silent contemplative meditation. Kicking things, hip tossing people, and firing high caliber weapons does a much better job.

28. Sing at the top of your lungs. It will embarrass your children.

29. Don't expect others to make you happy. It's not their job. It's your's.

30. It's okay to eat the last cookie.

31. It's also okay to sleep late.

32. The more people that I meet, the more I appreciate my dog.

33. My past helped shape the person that I am, but it doesn't define me.

34. The rate of teen pregnancy greatly diminishes after the age of twenty.

35. Everyone wants to change the world. Few people are willing to change themselves.

36. "Life isn't about finding yourself. It's about creating yourself." That is an ongoing process.

37. It bothers me that so few people even think about what is in their food or where it comes from. There is nothing more basic to life than the nutrition (or lack thereof) that comes from our food.

38. Speaking of food... never make eye contact while eating a banana... unless you are willing to deal with the consequences.

39. When something is important to someone, they will find a way... ANY way. If not, they'll find an excuse... ANY excuse.

40. Be brave. Even if you don't feel it, just pretend. No one can tell the difference anyway.

41. Choose the path less traveled by. It will make all the difference.

42. "Wisdom is knowing I am nothing, love is knowing I am everything, and between the two my life moves."

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