A Friday Night Surprise Birthday Party For An Old Friend

I went to a surprise birthday party for an old friend Friday night and I couldn't expound too much on the subject because of the possibility of alerting the guest of honor. The party was for my pal, Bob, who, beside being an old friend, was the first (and only) real estate broker I worked for before opening my own real estate company.

One of the main reasons I enjoyed working in Bob's office was the numerous friends that were also licensed with the company. Our office was well known in real estate circles and we actively participated in political and social arenas. Although we worked hard, we played hard as well and some of the antics and pranks that went on are legendary.

The party was hosted by Bob's nieces, Tamara and Kelly, who I have known since they were children. Aided by their respective spouses, children and friends, the party was a blast and Bob was clueless until his arrival. Held at Kelly's beautiful home on 2.5 acres, the theme was a good ole country barbecue and the fare was barbecued chicken with all the imaginable side dishes.

I went to the party with two of my special friends, Jim and Sarah, and most of the people at the party were old friends and co-workers from days gone by. Some of the people I had not seen in years and nostalgia was a prominent part of the party. A very nice open bar and a karaoke DJ led to performances by many of the party goers, including myself. I did not bring my camera to the party but there were many cameras there and I was able to obtain a few for your dining and dancing pleasure.

One of the more interesting things was to see that the "children" of my old friends had teenage and grown children and I spent half the evening flabbergasted that some of these "children" were in their late thirties and early forties. Mentally, this phenomenon made no sense to me as I am sure that I'm only 39 years old and have been for some years. Chronologically, however, it made perfect sense.

The News As I See It: The "Blizzard of 09" went charging through the northeast this weekend, closing many airports and roads, cancelling many flights and causing numerous car crashes. It virtually shut down Washington, D.C. When it snows hard enough in D.C., the city shuts down and Congress can’t get anything done...sort of like when it’s not snowing. One of the biggest emergencies occurred when medics had to help Vice President Joe Biden get his tongue unstuck from a flagpole.

A new poll shows that Tiger Woods’ popularity has dropped from 85 percent to 33 percent. President Obozo’s popularity is also at 33 percent, but Tiger had more fun getting there. Sources close to Tiger Woods say that he’s spending his days now eating cereal and watching cartoons. In other words, Tiger Woods has gone from living every man’s fantasy life, to living every man’s real life. The latest rumor is that Tiger Woods’ wife has decided to divorce him. Apparently, she realized that once she’s single she’ll have a better chance of sleeping with Tiger Woods.

The Obozo Administration announced today that the Shinnecock Indians on Long Island will be federally recognized, which means they can now build a casino in New York City. The White House recognized them as an official tribe after meeting with the four tribal leaders, Fat Tony, Louie the Barber, Crazy Sal, and Paulie Two Times, members of the Gambino tribe, indigenous people to the area.

And finally, I have found out how much Christmas wrapping paper is on the average roll....four inches less than I need.

This Date In History: 1620; The Pilgrims landed at Plymouth, Massachusetts. 1891; The first basketball game, invented at Springfield College in Massachusetts by James E. Naismith, was played. 1898; Pierre and Marie Curie discovered radium.

1913; The first crossword puzzle was printed in the New York World. 1937; Disney's Snow White, the first feature length color and sound cartoon, premiered. 1970; Elvis Presley met with president Richard Nixon in the White House. 1988; A terrorist bomb exploded aboard a Pan Am Boeing 747 over Lockerbie, Scotland, killing 270 people.

1991; Eleven of the former Soviet republics form the Commonwealth of Independent States. 1995; Palestinians took over the control of the city of Bethlehem.

Picture Of The Day: The featured picture was taken almost thirty years ago at Steamboat Springs, Colorado. We had just flown into the airport there and the picture was taken on the tarmac. Our group was called The Hialeah Ski Group and soon gained notoriety for the great parties and subsequent stories and tales. Most of the people in the picture attended Bob's Friday night birthday party.

From top to bottom: 1) Hialeah Ski Club in Steamboat Springs, Colorado. 2) My ex-wife and I in Steamboat Springs. 3) Nieces and hostesses, Tamara and Kelly. 4) Birthday boy, Bob, with Kelly leading the group in the "Happy Birthday" song. 5) Tamara and Kelly with cousin John. 6) Yours truly dancing with my pal, Judy. 7) (L-R) My pal and secretary in the early real estate years, Miriam, and my sweet pal, Sarah.

I'm sure that there will be more party pictures surfacing in the coming days and hopefully, I won't have to buy any of them back.

Printable Things I Never Told You: 1) I used to be schizophrenic, but we're all right now. 2) I'll be honest with you, a lot of today's jokes have been re-gifted. 3) The National Football League is asking it's players to donate their brains to medicine, ostensibly to study the effects of head collisions. The only thing that could possibly be funnier than that is if The National Basketball Association asks its players to donate their brains to study their lack of ability to conjugate verbs, specifically, "I am", and to pronounce the word "ask.". 4) When someone asks you, "A penny for your thoughts," and you "put your two cents in", what happens to the other penny? 5) At Friday's party, I ran into an old friend who told me that he broke his leg in two places. I told him to quit going to those places.....and that's five !

Birthdays: Joseph Stalin, Soviet Communist Leader 1879, Josh Gibson, baseball player 1911, Jane Fonda, actress 1937, Frank Zappa, rock musician, composer, and pianist 1940, Samuel L. Jackson, actor 1948, Chris Evert, tennis player 1954, Ray Romano, comedian, actor 1957, Florence Griffith-Joyner, sprinter 1959, Kiefer Sutherland, actor 1966, Julie Delpy, actress 1969.

The AREA 51 Retirement Home Bar and Grill: A little old lady wanted to join a biker club. She knocked on the door of a local biker club and a big, hairy, bearded biker with tattoos all over his arms answers the door. She proclaims "I want to join your biker club." The guy was amused and told her that she needed to meet certain biker requirements before she was allowed to join.

The biker asks her, "You have a bike?" The little old lady says "Yeah, that's my Harley over there" and points to a Harley parked in the driveway. The biker asks her "Do you smoke?" The little old lady says "Yeah, I smoke. I smoke 4 packs of cigarettes a day and a couple of cigars while I'm shooting pool."

The biker is impressed and asks "Well, have you ever been picked up by the Fuzz?" The little old lady says "No, but I've been swung around by my nipples a few times."

The Hits Just Keep On Coming: Little Johnny is passing his parents' bedroom in the middle of the night, in search of a glass of water. Hearing a lot of moaning and thumping, he peeks in and catches his folks in "the act". Before dad can even react, little Johnny exclaims "Oh, boy! Horsie ride!"

Daddy, relieved that Johnny's not asking more uncomfortable questions, and seeing the opportunity not to break his stride, continues. Pretty soon mommy starts moaning and gasping. Johnny cries out, "Hang on tight, Daddy! This is the part where the milkman usually get bucked off!"

Little Johnny had a cussing problem and his father was getting tired of it. He decided to ask his shrink what to do. The shrink said, "Since Christmas is coming up, you should ask Johnny what he wants Santa to bring him. If he cusses while he tells you his wish list, leave a pile of dog poop in place of the gift or gifts he requests."

Two days before Christmas, Johnny's father asked him what he wanted for Christmas. Johnny said, "I want a damn teddy-bear laying right beside me when I wake up. When I go downstairs I want to see a damn train going around the damn tree and when I go outside I want to see a damn bike leaning against the damn garage."

Christmas morning, Little Johnny woke up and rolled over into a pile of dog poop. Confused, he walked down stairs and saw another pile under the tree. Scratching his head, he walked outside and saw a huge pile of dog poop by the garage.

When Johnny walked back inside with a curious look on his face, his dad smiled and asked, "What did Santa bring you this year?" Johnny replied, "I think I got a dog, but I can't find the son-of-a-bitch!"

That's it for today my little tadpoles. Remember, ham and eggs are a day's work for a chicken but a lifetime commitment for a pig. More on Wednesday.

Stay Tuned !