Survival

Today is it, the "final" deadline in the chain of the last several weeks. Having said that, I've got a shitload on my plate for tomorrow, so it's not as if tonight I can go to sleep and wake up refweshed and all weddy to wock.

Tomorrow's promise is more projects, both large and small, Thursday -- woohoo -- is my birthday and my other half in town -- and then Friday I am taking off to spend some quality time with her away from offices, phone calls, clients, and pressure. The weekend is an assortment of good stuff -- dinners and brunches with friends and family, and -- for the first time in a while -- a real celebration of much more than my birthday. We're celebrating mine, my sister's -- whose birthday sort of got skipped over (New Year's Day) due to my dad coming home -- and just the fact that my father might have lost a step or two but is otherwise 25% lighter and a lot better than he was.

My other half kept asking me what I wanted for my birthday, and while there are a thousand things I could wish for -- an iPod photo, an NAD DVD HDCD changer (still lusting after that after four or five years), a Loewe flat-screen plasma, a Bugatti Veyron (the real thing, no miniatures please) and the available Seinfeld DVD's -- but the truth is I really only want two things: the continued (improving) health of my father and to have my other half in NYC full-time. There was a time when the trifecta was a long way off -- my dad to be healthy, my family to be able to smile and be happy, and my other half and I to be together physically full-time. Slowly but surely, I've watched as those three things have come closer and closer to fruition. My father is doing wonderfully and I thank god for each day he's improving and able to smile; my family is once again back to enjoying being together rather than commiserating and worrying and simply passing time as he heals; and my other half and I inch closer, day by day, to being together every day and every night.

Some people might opt for the plasma, and Loewe makes some incredible stuff -- one day I hope to have $20k to blow on an HD and another $15k for a B&O/Mark Levinson/Krell system. I'd love to get the iPod photo so I can actually fit my entire collection on one device (60GB) but it's something for another day. The Bugatti Veyron is a V-12 monster that goes from 0-60 in under four seconds and hits over 215 mph, and it looks like an orgasm. And in the right hands, I am sure the operator thereof could attain same given some open asphalt and few pedestrians. At this point I'd actually settle for the new Lexus GS with all-wheel drive and a V8. But the truth is, unless I'm on the track, I don't really find myself lusting after automobiles anymore, in deference to enjoying the back seats of cabs and the subway with my other half.

But if someone tossed me the keys to a gunmetal Aston Vantage soft top, well, I'd be willing to take it for a ride.

Anyway...I guess what I'm circling around is that I've found the things in life that make me happier than I imagined; I'm not sure if it's maturity, the prospect of reaching 35, or the fact that emotionally I've been through a meat grinder in nearly all phases of my life this past year, or that work has been the equivalent of a colonoscopy with a cattle-prod. The bottom line is all I am really looking forward to, and all I really need, is time with the people I care about -- family, friends, and -- of course -- my other half; some down-time to catch my breath before the next wave of pressure engulfs me for weeks or months at a time; and for my father to be healthy, happy and smiling.

And if anyone happens to have Heidi Klum's contact info, pass it my way: boogie@limegreenjello.com.

Thanks... ;-)