The day was just packed...

"They cooked us BBQ. I am pretty sure that is southern for 'We like you.' "

So last Friday was my birthday, and it was without a doubt the best birthday I've ever had. Thanks so much to everyone who came out to the park!

The day started out with a birthday party at Imo's, complete with balloons and a Transformers theme (thank God I didn't have to wear a pirate hat and eye patch like last year!). The cake and cookies were made by Denise and Tara. Then it was off to the Laundromat to do the 11 or so loads of laundry that had accumulated at the bottom of my closet.

Then back home to make lemonade and pack the car and head to Lions Club Park. This was without a doubt the biggest and best picnic ever. Lots of new folks joined us for the first time, I even knew some of them! The attendance was over 30 at last count. Thanks to Malcolm we had an awesome and unexpected pork tenderloin and to Patti and Marcus for the baked beans, and to the Hartmans for the awesome homemade Nutty Chocolate Shake (my favorite!), and to Denise and Tara for the wonderful desserts. Thanks to everyone for the presents and well-wishes.

When the party started to wind down, some of the gang spelled out "Happy B-Day Bryan" (among other things) around the Lions lake using hundreds of giant glow sticks.

When the picnic came to an end, I found myself sitting at a table at Sonic with some good friends, sipping on a giant watermelon slush and wishing that the day didn't have to end...

All you got is your friends...

Here's an excerpt from a book by Walter Mosley called
Devil in a Blue Dress:

EASY
If you got a friend that does bad and you still keep
him as your friend, even though you know what he's
like... Do you think that's right?


ODELL
All you got is your friends, Easy.

Time Passes

EASY
I thought about what Odell had said about friends
and it made sense to me.  Odell goes to church
every Sunday, so he would know.  Later on, he
challenged me to a game of dominoes. And what'd
he do that for?  We got to talkin' 'bout Texas
and fooled around and drunk almost a quart of
whiskey... And I forgot about (my troubles) and
sat with my friend, on my porch at my house, and
we laughed a long time...

It seems like when it's time to make a major
decision in life, I find myself thinking about
my friends.  I want to leave, but I don't want to
leave my friends.  So I stay, and one-by-one,
they leave me.

I find myself wondering what the
prophetic Odell would say about my situation?