My 57th Birthday

I woke up this morning to birthday wishes from all my loved ones. It was a wonderful way to wake up. Most people are not nearly as happy as I about having another birthday, much less a 57th one. But, birthdays are special for me.... and should be for everyone! It is the one day a year when you get to celebrate you, pamper you, do the things you want to do, watch the programs you want to watch, eat the foods you like to eat, etc. Birthdays are crucial to one's mental health, and this one has been great for mine!

I met today with Dr. Gillespie, Department Chair of the Business Department at Northwest University. It was a great meeting and we did some really creative brainstorming so I enjoyed that. The University has been very supportive of my continuing education in pursuit of my Ph.D. and I really like working with Teresa. It has, and will continue to be, a wonderful working relationship. Planning courses and that sort of thing is a lot of fun and gets my creative juices flowing. I got back to my office to continue grading papers from my "Issues in Management" class, which is not quite as fun as teaching, but still very engaging.

On my Facebook page I received quite a few well wishes for my birthday, another great tool for networking. It is so gratifying to receive so many posts from friends from all of my present and past adventures, and I do feel that, aside from family, friends are the greatest gift one can have in life.

This evening was a special treat. We met the Zintels at Las Margaritas for Mexican food and conversation. If anyone is like family, it is the Zintels. They have been our friends here for more than 20 years and our boys have grown up together. We've gone through all those things that best friends go through and have shared them together. Now Stan (nicknamed Stash), is suffering from brain cancer. He is a real trooper and has been fighting this disease for over a year and a half now. I'm very proud of him for continuing to work as an architect while fighting this daunting foe, and I'm very pleased to say that he is tumor free for the moment due some really good medical care he has been receiving. He is a real hero to me for how he has accepted this challenge in his life. He remains the same funny great guy that he has always been. When I found out I had a couple of mild forms of skin cancer (related to walking on the beach in Rio without sunscreen), I freaked out and thought I was going to die. Not so, Stash. He has battled it with certainty and dignity and strong belief in God.

So as you can see, it was a wonderful birthday, and my best present was getting to share time with my friend, Stash Zintel.