Birthday Gifts

My birthday was a week ago; it kinda got lost in the shuffle with the Littlest One’s birth. Which is all right by me. I’m not really into celebrating birthdays anymore. It’s a bit of the discomfort at the aging process mixed with slight embarrassment at being the center of attention. So, for the rest of my life, my birthday will be gladly and willingly overshadowed by my second daughter’s.

I did get some presents which I’m excited about. I won’t say who got me what, but I thank them all – really, it wasn’t necessary. And those that helped out with some cash, well, that’s necessary! But not required, and I hope I thanked everyone that deserved it.

So, what goodies did I get? A few I want to comment on: two CDs and two DVDs. Actually, that’s all you need to give me to make me happy. I’ve been discouraging books because, well, I have a humiliating backlog of unread stuff. But CDs I can listen to in the car and DVDs I can watch when I’m too tired to do anything else, or I have the house to myself since my tastes are a little odd.

There’s been a tradition over the past few years of getting me an opera CD for my birthday and / or Christmas. I think I have about ten or twelve by now. This year, I got Le nozze di Figaro, by immortal Mozart. We’ve listened to it a couple of times as background music while eating dinner. I haven’t delved into it, yet, though. And by delving, I mean headphones, long periods of uninterruption, reading through the libretto line by line in Italian with the translated English next to it. Yes, I actually enjoy doing this.

The other CD was Joe Walsh’s There Goes the Neighborhood. A strange but nostalgic pick. I loved Joe Walsh’s music and guitar playing, solo and with the Eagles, particularly in the 80s when I myself wielded a guitar. A moderate influence on me, more so as a rhythm than a lead guitarist. Me and a girlfriend saw him play – I think at Great Adventure, of all places! – and absolutely 100 percent enjoyed it. I recall him playing an entire song or two completely on his back, splayed out on the stage. Hmmmmm. A little too much to drink, Mr. Walsh? But he’s great – I love the slightly zany humor he brings to the proceedings. My favorite song on the CD is “Rivers” and, of course, “Life of Illusion.”

One of the DVDs is a double-disk set The Race to the Moon by the History channel, which chronicles … well, not really the race to the moon but certain peripheral aspects of it. The corporate culture of early NASA that was such fertile ground for the space program. Other, less-widely known 1950s ideas for a space program. NASA’s second-greatest glory, the safe retrieval of Apollo 13. And, finally, the magnificent why? that’s the space shuttle. Should definitely be interesting viewing, and blogable.

Finally, a little more nostalgia with a heaping of camp: The Creature from the Black Lagoon. I vividly recall this critter from my youth, though I have absolutely no memory of the movie. I started watching it a few nights ago with the Littlest One cradled on my chest, but she soon had other ideas. Very vocal ones. So, I’ll rewatch the entire flick when I have some free time on my hands. Hey, did you catch that – “when I have some free time on my hands”! Well, regardless, I can’t wait to lose myself in the black-and-white melodramatic cheese.