Question of the day

    Do you have this person in your life?  I probably have more than I know of, but two come to mind; my best friend Steve and my friend Brian who's more like a brother than a friend. I'm the Godfather to his daughter. Those are the two of whom I can say the stupidest ass shit,  and they would laugh and say or do something even worse, making me feel better. They've both have witnessed me doing something dumb or funny and are still my closest friends.

Cinquante- A Negro in Paris

 I was able to wake up in a suburb of Paris France to see 50 years on 11 November. It's so surreal to me. The very first thing I did was to get on my knees to thank God for letting me see it, then like every day, I get dressed and I head to the city (5 train stops away) to get a breakfast and pastries (the kind I have to lie to my nutritionist and doctor about)  before I start my day, and no matter what I do, I always end up at the Champs Elysee. It's about 2 miles of heaven for me. If you love shopping, eating, shopping, people-watching, shopping, meeting new people, shopping, pastries, shopping, bookstores, shopping, shopping, and shopping, go there.
I have the best friend of all, in Steve Demuth, who made a dinner reservation for me at the Tower 58 Eiffel for my birthday. I was told I needed to bring my passport and a print out of the reservation, but my name preceded me- since it's a French-Canadienne name, all I had to say was my name, and doors were open without my having to show any identification. I was referred to as 'the Canadian one.'   Every one was friendly. I was escorted to the elevator up to the restaurant on the 2nd level of the Tower Eiffel, and though I was over dressed ( all the other males wore dress shirts or sweaters with nice slacks), I love wearing suits. I like giving good first impressions.
I never imagined being in Paris to celebrate 50 by myself, but I'm not complaining. I've had some friends that never even got to see 40, or even 30, so keeping that in mind, I am grateful that God blessed me to see 50. I don't look my age so that makes it even better!    

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Hopefully God will bless me to come to Paris again with my soulmate, of whom I'm convinced He is still preparing for me...

Thanks!

 

The front of my birthday card

Thank you, to all who wished me a happy birthday yesterday! Your birthday wishes made the day go by easily.  It really meant alot to me. 48 isn't as painful as I thought it would be (between me and you, it would have been nice if I had someone special to wake up next to me to tell me happy birthday, but I digress). The first thing I did, after realizing I had indeed  awakened, is, I got on my knees and I thanked God for waking me up and blessing me to see another year. I wanted that to be the first thing I did- to give Him the glory and the praise.  I've needed Him in the past, and I will definitely need Him in the present and future.

The inside of the card

I only received one birthday card, but even if I had received a whole bunch of cards, the card I did receive would be the best one; it came from my Goddaughter and her parents, and she had drawn a picture on it for me. I love her art work and I have my office walls covered with pictures my nephew made for me when he was 4, her age, and I have a few from her as well. There is something special about any gift that is made from the heart.
  I always take it for granted that my family and friends will remember, especially since it shows up on their Facebook calendars, and since I always remember their birthdays and I always offer to take my local friends out to dinner or drinks, but after today I'll be saving some money.  I have to give credit to my friend Scott who treated me to lunch a week ago because his family was going to be in Georgia this week, to my friend Rich who invited me to watch a funk band play last night ( up until then I had spent the entire day by myself), to Valerie, who I met at the gym a few days ago who invited me to lunch today and to Ahmad, who's wife cooked a great Moroccan meal earlier tonight. And to my best friend Steve, who's attending seminary school in Berkeley. I'm going to visit him next week. That, I'm excited about.

Note to self

Life doesn't always go as we had planned. Stay in prayer; the best outcome has already been determined. Just allow it to happen, and participate with God by thanking Him and believing.--Steve H. Demuth
( my best friend, and strongest shoulder)

The best outcome has already been determined. The best outcome has already been determined. I love that sentence. The best outcome has already been determined. God is already at work on whatever it is that I'm concerned about!