Brings in a copy of Treasure Island and puts it on the table. An original leather bound 1883 first printing.
Cliche' I know.
Couples it with a copy of Stevenson's Island Nights' Entertainment, original as well, leather bound as well, dated 1893 and signed by the author. A note reads:
A good man who thought kindly enough to welcome me.
Thank you Swash, Happy Birthday...
Gage.
Already welcomed it with you once, but it never hurts to overdo things.
Happiest of birthday's, my love. And whether you say that it is the miles, and not the years, next year really is the big one. Let's see if you are still saying it then. *grin*
I want to share something with you... It part of an E-mail I recently got but it fits....
I wish you enough sun to keep your attitude bright.
I wish you enough rain to appreciate the sun more.
I wish you enough happiness to keep your spirit alive.
I wish you enough pain so that the smallest joys in life appear much bigger.
I wish you enough gain to satisfy your wanting.
I wish you enough loss to appreciate all that you possess.
I wish enough "Hello's" to get you through the final "Good-byes."
This is my wish for you...
Dearest,
I wish you enough...
love
faith
~d~
Some quotes by and for artists is my only present.... I hope you like them..
"The notion of following your passion is worth indulging. Your passion is your source of power. To lead a really full life, you need to follow where it leads . . . in defiance of all things conventional, perhaps. And of course it is at a price. You have to know that going in. But the price you pay, in my opinion, is not even worth the time of day to think about. . ."
-- Doug Peacock
"What is erotic? The acrobatic play of the imagination. The sea of memories in which we bathe. The way we caress and worship things with our eyes. Our willingness to be stirred by the sight of the voluptuous. What is erotic is our passion for the liveliness of life."
Diane Ackerman
"The day will come when, after harnessing space, the winds, the tides and gravitation, we shall harness for God the energies of love. And on that day, for the second time in the history of the world, we shall have discovered fire."
-- Pierre Teilhard de Chardin
As one of the first to do so last night in the Pearl, let me be one of the last to get this in under the wire:
Happy Birthday, mi amigo. A toast to someone I once called the luckiest guy I know ... but a famous man once said that luck is when preparation meets opportunity, and others have said that one's abilities determine one's luck.