ONE MORE AT FOUR

The Beast...the Little Dude...ain't so little any more...tomorrow he turns five!

At any rate, we are trying our best to provide something entertaining and useful here from time to time - it's just that every time the wheels really get turning the plate coincidentally tends to fill up with Real Life stuff.

Like now.

YEA AND VERILY, 'TIS A QUANDARY

My bride, Her Most Royal And Sublime Awesomeness, has a birthday coming up early next month. It's the Birthday That Shall Not Be Named, to be specific, and so we shall refer to it henceforth and ever after as her 28th.

Yours truly does not have a John Mayer-sized budget for a weekend blowout - and that's not milady's style anyway.

What's a guy to do?

PLEASE DON'T ASK...

...what happened to the week. Two days of ice, sick wife, catching up at work, daffy Nana, and...and...I'm sure there's something else I've forgotten for which I will be justly berated.

Anyway, it's Phil's birthday. Beast and I will drum-duet with our chopsticks tonight in tribute.

THE OLD GROUCH WOULD'VE BEEN 78

Happy birthday, Dad.

Just to get you up to speed quickly, wherever you're at: my wife's still beautiful, Mom's still talking people's ears off, and your grandchildren are still adorable. And smart! In fact, the grandson you never got to meet at this very moment is walking around with his toy cell phone stuffed into his underwear, and if that's not a sign of incipient genius I don't know what is.

Turns out you were right about that broadcasting career not amounting to much, although it did take 20 years. Tenure, good benefits and a government pension is sounding mighty sweet right about now, although those last two are about to get chewed up a good bit up in Albany.

I just wish you'd laid off the True Greens sooner, y'know?

5

Happy birthday, sweet Noodle:

And still the best birthday present I ever got. (Yes, way better than new golf clubs.)