Forty Something…
Birthdays seem to pile up faster and faster the older you get. I’m forty one today, but in the immortal words of Indiana Jones…
“It’s not the years, Honey… it’s the mileage.”
Back in 1989 I became a manager for a caricature concession company at the tender age of 23. I was roughly the same age as the artists I trained and younger than some. At 25 I owned my own caricature businesses and got a lot of funny looks from people when they were told I was the owner of the business. A few years ago I officially contracted an artist to draw caricatures for me that had not yet been born when I did my first theme park caricature in 1985. Now I have many artists that are less old than some of my drawings. Whew.
Ah, well. The gray hairs and wrinkles accumulate but so do the moments watching your kids grow into responsible people and feeling proud, the days spent with family and friends and the results of working hard to achieve your dreams. There are plenty of wrong turns and bumpy roads in life, but if you are better at remembering the sunny days and blue skies of your journey, you are the happier for it.
Besides, I earned all my gray hairs.
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happy birthday!
Happy birthday Tom! You’re not old, just mature (well, as mature as a cartoonist can get anyway). I remember when 40 seemed like old age. I’ll be 35 this fall, and 40 suddenly seems pretty young to me.
Happy Birthday Tom….I know what it’s like, I just made my 45th trip around the sun!
Hey, Isn’t that CANE a little stiff for a guy YOUR age????
I read in a fortune cookie once, ” If you didn’t KNOW how old you were, How old would you be?”
Happy Birthday, Tom! Yeah, these years are passing by at Warp Nine (to use the proper geek parlance), and the key to getting through them is exactly as you said: remembering the good stuff. Thanks for the reminder!
Happy Birthday Tom!
Been enjoying and appreciating your site.
Greg
P.S. Lost took a turn for the better on Wednesday, yes? 🙂
Thanks, everybody!
If I gave the impression I am having a problem getting older… I was just being a smartass. I’ve got no problems with birthdays and enjoy where I am in life. Hell, I set a personal best on the bench press and deadlift last month! Take that, you 20 somethings!
BTW Greg, I have a LOST post in the works. I agree things finally came around in the last month.
Hey, buddy! Happy Birthday, old man!
Love ya, bud. C-ya soon.
Well, happy birthday! Fridays are one of the best days for birthdays, I’ve always thought. A fun day of the year combined with a fun day of the week. Almost like a Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup! “Hey, you got your birthday all over my Friday!” “Well you got your Friday all over my birthday!” OK – maybe it’s not at all like a Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup… but a hearty happy birthday nevertheless!
Happy Birthday! Now you know what its like when you’re subjects say:
“Dear can you make me look youngah?” “Hold on wait’ll I put my teeth in!”
Not too shabby Tom. Most 41 yearolds have a Budweiser six pack.
I turned 44 on April 4 (4/4) this year. Wait’ll you turn 54 on 5/4 !!!!
Yet another generic HAPPY BIRTHDAY greeting – and I say, if Hirschfeld can make it a whole century, I think you can too!
Happy Birthday Tom! Its not old age, simply WISDOM, well thats what I use to explain myself….. hope you had a great day!
Tom,
Love that self caricature! Happy Birthday, man!