The Birthday Thing...

I've been wondering what I'd write today about my birthday. I mean, birthdays are suppost to be when you consider your life just a bit. And my life isn't going too well right now. I'm unemployed, and it's a soft market for any kind of job right now. And I'm getting close to 40, and I still haven't got a career or even a sign I'll get out of the paycheck to paycheck life.

All that is important, but so are other things. And one of them caught me between the eyes today. I treated myself to a good lunch at a local greasy spoon (Tom's Diner, for anybody that live in the Denver area) and ordered liver and onions... even had pie afterwards. And as I read the paper and people watched out the big window, I realized that in at least one sense, things were good.

Tom's is on the main drag here in Denver, a street called Colefax. You can find the best and the worse of Denver on that street, and it's also the longest street. Out the window there isn't a great view... there is a Office Depot in an old building and a Guardian Angel's office (those guys that wear the red hats and walk about trying to keep things safe) and not much else. But traffic, both auto and foot, is heavy.

I felt good. I really did. And it reminded me why I like living in Denver. It's a large city, but not huge. It has a small town vibe, while at the same time offering up anything the larger cities have. Like sports? We got every major type of sports here.. football, baseball, hockey, scoocer, even area football. The arts? Every kind of museum you can think of, and lots of art shows and stores. Food? Lots of that too, from diners to fine dining. And yet the lady serving me my meal today still chated about school and the zoo, and gave me a free dip of ice cream on my pie becuase it was my birthday. I could picture that happening back home.

Whatever I end up doing on the job front, I'm glad I'm here. It's a nice place to be.