Happy Birthday Dad!

My dad turned 60 on Tuesday and we celebrated on Mother's Day. Poor Mom always having to share Mother's Day with Dad's birthday - but hey, they always get good combined presents. This year, Laura, Aaron, John, and I bought them tickets to the Aerosmith/ZZ Top concert, not expecting them to get as excited as they did. Their reactions just reinforce the fact that they are still borderline hippies. Take the design for the t-shirts Aaron and Laura made (image at bottom of page). Our nephew, who is almost 16 (that makes me feel old) thought that it was Jimi Hendrix. No Jamie, that's your grandpa. To add to the fun, some of Dad's railroad buddies came out, including our neighbor, all of whom remember the days when Dad's 'fro was impressively large, especially when placed atop a tall, skinny, white man. They went on to describe the trend of other men perming their hair, but still unable to reach the heights of Dad's fluffy fro.

These days, Dad's hair is now a little more salt and pepper, heavier on the salt, and he's still thin. He is no longer smoking; a habit he kicked almost 18 months ago, quitting cold -turkey, after 45 years of puffing away. He attributes it to an antibiotic he was on for a sinus infection, but I attribute it to my aunt, his sister, having breast cancer. He still has a couple of years left at the railroad before he retires, but he is getting in some good retirement activities for practice. They bought a tractor and have started their veg. garden. They are testing it out this year and will hopefully commit to participating in the farmer's markets next year. I just hope Mom can stick to the plan.