Why I am a Birthday Person

As with most human beings across the globe, I have enjoyed my birthdays since I was young. It has always been a day that I have celebrated with family, good cheer and enjoyable activities. For me, it is a celebration of my person-hood and of the people who support and encourage me as a person. These themes have been a constant each June 5th, from early childhood to now in my mid-thirties. It is an excuse each year to let out my playful, exuberant side!

Like many of you, my birthday was always a load of fun when I was a child! It was a blast having my cousins over for birthday parties as a kid. I loved playing with them, since I was an only child and always felt it was a treat to be with other kids my age. I have twenty-four first-cousins, many of whom lived nearby when I was growing up, and were close to my age, so I had plenty of company! I loved the presents from many generous family members, along with money in birthday cards, making me feel special.

I can remember cool toys that I got for my birthday, including a kid's bike with training wheels when I turned six, an oversized bucket of LEGOs when I turned seven, a Micro-Machine set when I turned eight, and a Super-Soaker 100 when I turned nine. I am sure that some of you can remember those toys. Each toy kept me occupied the entire summer, until school resumed in September. A few of my toys were broken within a few weeks, but that is a different story!

In my teenage years, each birthday felt like a milestone, as I changed so much as a person from year to year. When I turned 13, I was in my awkward pubescent stage; everything was new and challenging. My birthday meal took on much greater prominence, as my growing body craved pizza, soda, pasta and other treats. For my 14th birthday, I received the PC game Warcraft II, which launched me deeper into the world of nerd-dom and medieval fantasy. For a couple years after that, I was somewhat bored and lonely on my birthdays, due to social isolation, but I really enjoyed my birthdays again once I turned 18!

As a twenty-something, I used my birthdays as opportunities to party and to spend time with friends, celebrating the onset of summer with the warm glow of alcoholic drinks, after a fun-filled, euphoric day. My parents paid for cable to be installed on my new TV on my 20th birthday, for the TV purchased with money earned at my Red Robin job. I loved all the channels that I got and sampled a variety of new shows! My 21st birthday was celebrated with my cousins at the original Starter's on 309 South; we played together as kids, now it was great fun having drinks together as young adults!

  

In my mid-twenties, I started my long-standing annual tradition of having my birthday dinner at Texas Roadhouse. At that time, this was followed by a night of raucous drinking and partying with my friends at Ripper's and at other places, including Bethlehem Brew Works and Starter's Riverport, where I held a large, memorable party on my 25th. I wore my new red Hawaiian shirt for a tropical-themed birthday party attended by twenty-five people; I still wear that shirt each summer. I wish I could relive those days; who doesn't!

I have always felt that my birthday rolls around at a great time of the year. June 5th is roughly halfway between Christmases, so it is an awesome way to split up the year. The weather in early June can be mild and showery, the last gasp of spring before we head into summer. I don't mind, because, as an adult, I despise the unrelenting heat and humidity of summer. As a kid, my birthday was near the end of school, so my big day was followed by the joys of summer vacation, spent playing with my toys, with my cousins, and with kids in my West Bethlehem neighborhood, very close to Martin Tower. With a June birthday, once summer ended, I would start looking forward to Christmas and visa-versa. I was a great system!

My birthday is my favorite date on the calendar, more important to me than Christmas; it is a celebration of me! Let's face it: we are all narcissistic and our birthdays are days on which we focus on ourselves and celebrate our lives. I definitely enjoy the attention and the presents that are bestowed upon me each year, along with delicious food and desserts. I don't expect these things, but my family is very generous with me, my parents in particular. I may have differences with my family, but they are very generous people. I take time out of my birthday celebrations to recognize their role in creating the man I am now and thank them for their generosity.

Knowing what I like, I now have my birthday ritual down to a science. I start my day with lunch at the Lehigh Valley Mall, followed by coffee and reading at Barnes & Noble. Later in the day, my parents treat me to Texas Roadhouse, where I savor my favorite meal of prime rib, medium rare, with baked sweet potatoes, Caesar salad and cinnamon bread; I even get up on the saddle afterwards and let the servers give me the "Big Texas Yee-haa!" after telling everyone how old I am. My chosen dessert is ice cream, either cookies n' cream or chocolate chip cookie dough. After a round of cards with my parents, I enjoy a new DVD or book. I surely make the day as enjoyable as possible!

Since I am socially aware and concerned about other people, I realize that birthdays are important to the people I care about. Every individual needs to have one day set aside just for them and their preferences; it is their birthright! Most people would agree with me; this is why every year a ton of money is made on birthday cards, cakes, dinners in restaurants, etc. I always send heart-felt birthday greetings to you, my Facebook friends, because I know how important my birthday is to me; I want you to feel good on your special day!

Let's drop the shame and just enjoy our birthdays to the maximum, not caring if the people around us judge us for it. It is important for our mental health and our overall level of happiness and self-respect. Miserable people are the ones who resent others for celebrating their birthdays, so let's be happy and stick it to the toxic people around us!