ANOTHER BIRTHDAY
The Old Rusty Nail
AN E-JOURNAL FOR OLD PEOPLE
Russell Burton, an Old Person
Last night I had my usual Friday dinner with a friend who
lives a couple of blocks from me. These
dinners have almost become a ritual with me doing the cooking and she brings
over a bottle of wine. As I uncorked the
wine to let it ‘breathe’ she remarked that she had thought of bringing over
champagne to cerebrate my birthday which would occur before our next usual
Friday dinner.
Her noting my upcoming birthday was almost a surprise but
not really for in the back of my mind lingered this near-future event which
will make it 83 times I have lived through this ‘celebration’. And, at one time
in my life it was a big event which I looked forward to with great anticipation
for I would get presents and there would be a party. Oh how I enjoyed getting presents in those
boyhood days. But, it was not only
presents which I looked forward to it was the Angle Food Cake my mother always
made and in those days it was from scratch. Yes, I was reminded each time that
it took a dozen egg whites. What she did
with the yokes I have no idea.
Like all things I grew out of wanting that cake and
birthdays. In fact, I can not remember
the last time eating this kind of cake and they are available in all grocery
stores in the bakery department ready to put icing for a few dollars. Still, when I do see one I think about those
early birthdays and smile.
Of course as I grew older birthdays were less exciting to me
even though the gifts I got were more expensive. The older I got the less important birthdays
became until now I try to forget them but of course that does no good because
they do come around each year whether I like it or not. I suppose I should relish them because there are
fewer left!
Back to last night, I felt bad because I had forgotten her
birthday in early December. I think it
is the 6th but I am not sure.
I did remember it in the middle of the month when we were going to a
movie so I apologized and paid for the movie tickets and bought us a serving of
nachos to eat while we watched the movie. So my belated birthday gifts were
received with a smile. Well actually it was only one gift because we usually split
the cost of the tickets and the food. Oh, I think I bought us each a glass of
red wine.
Even though I might try to forget my birthday it is
difficult because my birthday is the same day as Martin Luther King’s birthday
which is a national holiday. I make fun of that fact because not many people’s
birthday is a national holiday. Well the
national holiday is not always on his birthday 15 January. You know they tie these things to weekends.
I have a difficult time even remembering my relatives’
birthdays for some reason. And, I can’t remember ages. But not always for the
birthday of my favorite uncle I do not know, I think it is in early June but I
know his age for it is ten years older than mine. Hey that’s easy. My late wife’s birthday was on the 30th
of August. For a long time I had a
problem remembering whether it was on that day or the 31st. I
struggled with that until very recently I realized that it was the same as my
late sister’s birthday and a day before her daughter’s birthday which I always
remembered was on the 31st.
I have two of my three grandkids birthdays down cold because
the first one was born the 4th of July. Who can forget that? Then the second one was
born on the 4th of June. Of course relating it to the first born is
no brainer. Unfortunately for me the third one was not born on the 4th
of any month so I do struggle. Of course
I remember my Mother’s birthday on the 6th of September and my
father was born on 20 March 1906. His
birth date is clearly shown on his Baptism certificate. I know that because I have it framed hanging
on my bedroom wall.
My close lady friend has her birthday on the first of
May. Her birthday is easy for me to remember
because it is the same day as my late very best friend’s birthday. We went to Veterinary School
I have another crutch to remember those 1 May birthdays. My major professor when I was getting my
doctorate in physiology had a ditty which he recalled each May first. It went like this, ‘Hooray, hooray the first
of May outdoor screwing starts today’. He was a master at such outrageous humor
and he knew hundreds of limericks which is a type of poem. Now for my readers who do not know, real
limericks are always what can be called dirty in that they involve sex in a
rather vulgar way. He enjoyed drinking
and when he had his share he would begin reciting limericks regards of where he
was. How much fun!!!!
So, I have two close friends with the same birthday and my
wife and sister with the same birthday. And, let’s not forget that my birthday
is the same as the late Rev. King. Well this all appears to be a rather
interesting coincidence but it is not for it can be explained mathematically,
although I don’t know the formula. But
it is a fact that when there are just 16 or is it 18 people together the chances
that two of them will share the same birthday is nearly 100%. I was aware of
this many years ago so I tried it out on friends at a party at my house. There were only 14 people in attendance but
what the heck, I will see if it might work with fewer people.
Now are you ready for this?
Three people shared the same birthday!!!! Oh my…
When I was born births were generally performed at that home
with the assistance of a women birther.
Physicians were much less involved that they are today. For some reason it was known by my folks that
at birth I was to be a breach presentation.
This meant that I was to arrive in the world upside down and
backwards. How this was determined then
is still a mystery for MRI’s had not been invented and I doubt that they would
have x-ayed my mother.
None the less there was great concern for this meant that I
could not breathe until my entire body and umbilical cord had been
presented. For this reason, I was born
in a birthing home with the assistance of a physician. Obviously, my birth was a success without any
serious flaws, I think but some of my friends are not always sure.
But, the fact that a physician was there, a strange turn of
events occurred. Being born close to
midnight caused a problem regarding my actual birth date. The physician who was busy delivering me
recorded it as January 16, 1932 But, the
nurses who were less busy, told my folks that actually it was on the 15th
so it has always been celebrated on that date.
Interestingly, even though my birthday certificate shows the 16th
all of my legal documents show the 15th. Oh my…
1/15
