A Day Late and Another Year Older....

The Chief/circa 2004

I didn't get a chance to do this yesterday. Even though my postings have been spotty, I have had a couple of things that I wanted to post. I'm not even going to say that I'm going to make an excuse, I've been working a lot and getting the house ready for a move, but I have had the time.

My father had his 70th birthday yesterday. I'm really happy for him, but for whatever reason, it hadn't dawned on me that he was going to be that old. Also, the day before, my niece, you know, my sisters kid...turned 20.

The Chief (dad), is a piece of work. If you know, or have seen him, he doesn't really pass for 70. That might be why I never thought of him as being that old. Or maybe I was just in denial, because if he's that old, that means I'm old too.

The Chief retired almost two years ago. Not totally by his choice. It's been a struggle for him, he's always worked. Like most of my family, he's got, well, I don't know if I'd call it ADD, but...he doesn't sit still really well. He's slowly going crazy.

I always wondered if I'd be like him as I got older. We aren't exactly the same type of personalities, though I would add that's not such a bad thing. We've gotten a lot closer over the last few years, something that makes me very happy.

Sure, we did a lot of stuff over the years. He'd always humor me when I came home when I lived out of town and would go with me to see the Braves...or whatever sporting event I wanted to catch. I know he wasn't a big baseball fan...but he went. And always tried to make the best out of it. Because he knew how much I enjoyed it.

I always wondered what it would be like to be retired, I know it doesn't agree with him. I did get to find out a little bit about not going to work each day...when I wasn't. And yeah, it was a challenge. I can see why the Chief is going a bit stir crazy. Having downtime, when you never really had any, takes some getting used to.

The Chief and my mom are living down in Bluffton, South Carolina these days. It's a far cry from their heyday in Longwood, Florida and for that matter...Atlanta. But they are there for a reason.

As for my niece, I think that's the one that makes me feel really old. I guess I probably don't feel as old as her mom does, but still. The kid is 20. And she is preggers. I can still picuture seeing her when she was just a couple hours old.

Anyway, enough about the fam. I just felt like getting that out there. I know I'm getting old. Heck, I feel it, pretty much every day. From a creaky ankle to a shoulder that gradually tightens up as the day goes. I feel it. I do try, not to think about it. I don't do older stuff. I'm pretty tech savvy. I'm fairly healthy. But I'm not as young as I used to be either.

Hey Chief, told you over the phone, I'll tell you again...Happy Birthday dude...

Hail to the Chief: