Tuesday, October 27, 2009

The way to a man's heart...

A couple of years back my buddy Randy put me on the spot when he volunteered me to get up in front of a group of Toastmasters and tell them about my favorite Christmas gift. It was a tough call to make, but as of last weekend I think I have a candidate for "best birthday present" honors.

Last Sunday afternoon I arrived at my parents' house for a traditional family dinner. It also happened to be my Birthday Dinner*, which was to be celebrated with a full roast's worth of my paternal grandmother's legendary barbecue beef. But as I opened the kitchen oven, I was surprised to discover a genuine Giordano's deep-dish pizza, shipped in dry ice from Chicago.

Not to be outdone, my sister and brother-in-law presented me with a $21 gift certificate to Barbacoa. Why $21, you say? Because my traditional burrito bowl with pinto beans, spicy pork, two scoops of pico de gallo and one scoop of hot sauce costs exactly seven dollars with tax.

When you get older, you aren't as happy to see your birthday roll around. But when those birthdays remind you of just how great your family is, they're a little easier to take.

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*I actually do have a birthday, which will be news to anyone I may have misled into believing that I was a test tube child.