Today is my birthday but I have nothing planned. Yesterday Carey and Barbara took me out to dinner at Junior’s for my birthday. I suspect that I have celebrated my birthday more often with Carey than with anyone else. I’ve known him since 1977. I screwed up and went to the wrong Juniors first, there’s one on 49th street and one on 45th. I went to the 49th. I didn’t know there were two and didn’t check the address when Carey emailed me with the plans. Know why? I’m an idiot. Thank god for cell phones. Carey has not internalized having a phone yet. I called and texted him when I got to the one on 49th street to tell him it was closed. The problem is that Carey doesn’t keep his phone in a place that he can hear it when he gets a call or a message and never checks to see if he got one. We connected because he called me. At least he called as soon as I wasn’t there as he knows that I’m punctilious about being punctual.
Juniors did not have either of the two things I planned on ordering, a tongue sandwich, and the chocolate mousse cheesecake. I ordered the pastrami instead of the tongue which was not on the menu. When I found out that the mousse machine was broken I said, “oh no and it’s my birthday!” I ordered the devil’s food cheesecake instead. That was incredible and they gave me a dish of whipped cream with a candle in it and the wait staff sang happy birthday to me.
I had planned on going food shopping afterward but didn’t. Then instead of walking to 125th street I walked to only 59th street. I made up for some of that by getting off the train two stops before mine and walking from there. My exciting birthday plan is to see my gastroenterologist. I might stop on the way there for bagels as a birthday treat. I still need to go food shopping. Do I know how to celebrate my birthday or what?
I usually love my birthday. This is a special one, I’m 64, 2⁶. I won’t be another power of two again until I’m 128. Now that I’m 64 will you still need me? Will you still feed me? Unfortunately, today I woke up with anxiety with a side of depression. I’m focusing on negative things. To actively combat that I tried meditating, which helped. I did it to Pete Kennedy’s Electric Sitar Variations, which I highly recommend. That helps when nothing else would. I’m listening to it while I’m writing but I also need to meditate more. I need to accentuate the positive. I got a happy birthday call from my sister Alison last night and my two-year-old niece Joanie sang happy birthday to me. Lots of people are wishing me happy birthday online and via texts. I’m seeing The Kennedys tomorrow night. I’ll make matzoh brei to make your bubbe cry for breakfast. I’ll get a free drink at Starbucks.
I finished recording Gord’s Gold yesterday. I had to make a last-minute substitution as after I recorded my parts I got Tony Trischka’s new album emailed to me and as I saw him this week I had to put it into the show. That’s the kind of inconvenience I enjoy. He did a cowrite with Walt Whitman! Walt is even older than I am. Tony put Whitman’s O Captain My Captain to music. The album Shall We Hope is about the Civil War. It’s sensational. Writing that made me feel better. I like being a DJ and I like being a writer. They are both part of my sense of self. Being negative is not part of my sense of self. Someone in my friend’s band once said I was the most positive person he knows. That might not be what I am but it’s what I want to be. There are people in my Mets Facebook group that wallow in negativity. I’m working on not feeling negative about them, much better to avoid them. I would not be surprised if something happened today that made me feel great. If nothing does, I’ll deal with it. Something will eventually. Something always comes up that makes me feel great.
The one thing that is not bothering me is getting older. As the cliché says, it beats the alternative.
Wise Madness 