Blogging · Mi Vida Loca · nonfiction · postaday · Stories of my life

It’s My Birthday! Come on In!

JackieP

Hello people!

I do hope everyone’s weekend is going well. As you can probably tell by my title, today is my birthday! Yay, me! And folks, it’s a big one!

Some of you know how old I am, most don’t. Some guess, most don’t care. That’s ok, too. It’s just another number. Another year of life on this planet, another year of goals met and missed. Another year of highs and lows. So, the big question today is…how old am I? Get ready for it people, because I’m going to tell you! Drum roll, please!!………………….

Wow!
Wow!

 

Yeah, sixty years old. The big 60! More than half a century. Oh my goodness. I don’t feel a day over thirty and that’s the truth. Now, sometimes my body feels twice my age, but my mind, forever young.

A few good friends knew how old I was turning because I would email them and tell them it was a big downer turning so old. I was down about it too. Now? Not so much. Eh, it’s no different from 59 or 58 or even 50. I managed to survive them all. Hell, I’m sometimes still surprised I managed to get this far. 😉

I’ve seen lots of lists going around….30 before I’m 30, 40 things I’ve learned now that I’m 40, and so forth. So I’ve come up with my own list. Oh, goddess, don’t worry, I’m not going to list 60 things! Whew, who has time for that! I’m short cutting it…..

Things I’ve learned in Each Decade

1955- 1965 ~~ I learned how to walk, talk, pee in a toilet, read, write, survive childhood, fear, eat by myself, disappear in a crowd, make friends, keep secrets, hide pain, smoke, dress myself, what a menstrual cycle was, pick my battles with parents, migraines, how strong I was, how weak I was, loss of childhood, anger, how to forgive

1965-1975 ~~ I learned how to put on makeup, appreciate good music, write stories, flirt, drink booze, debate life, ride a horse, ride a bike, do laundry, keep opinions to myself, reason like an adult, manage my paycheck, balance a checkbook, pay bills, grocery shop, how it hurts to lose someone you love to death, appreciating life, losing a friend to a mental illness, unrequited love, to leave home for the first time, forgive someone

1975-1985 ~~ I learned what sex was really like, what a hangover was, living with a lover, living with a husband, being hurt by someone you love, depression, surviving, fear (again), learning about miscarriages, learning I would never have children, how to paint, how to let go of love, how to drive, how to move like an expert,

1985-1995 ~~ I learned what a divorce was, what a stalker was, more fear, true love, awesome sex, letting go of the past, looking forward to the future, fun, laughter, college, my own car, forgiveness, about diabetes, moving home and leaving again, to control my anger, paying off my first car

1995-2005 ~~ I learned what losing a parent was like, moving out of the country, second marriage, friendship, how reconnecting with my mom was great, forgiveness (again), a different kind of love, family is not always what you want it to be,

2005-2015 ~~ I learned true friendship, blogging, diabetes first hand, illness, losing everything for the nth time, surviving, forgiveness (see a pattern here?), love, taking care of myself, writing books, publishing books and making some dreams come true!

I made my dream of being a published author come true before I turned sixty. Now that is an accomplishment to be proud of! Speaking of which….for the weekend (the 12th and 13th) The Canine Caper will be free on Amazon Kindle! Monday morning it goes back to the original price. So if you haven’t bought it yet, get it free today! While you are there, pre-order A Case of Deceit, which will be coming out on Kindle and paperback at the end of October!

 

Thank you for joining my birthday bash! I appreciate every single one of you! Yay!

 

 

55 thoughts on “It’s My Birthday! Come on In!”

  2. Happy Birthday, Jackie! Hope you get to enjoy a delicious bite of cake & glass of wine today! ( or slice of pizza & icy beer…or a dish of berries & hot chocolate with whipped cream) Whatever you have, put a candle on it and then blow it out! Thank you for the birthday present! I’ve downloaded it!

    Liked by 1 person

  5. Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday dear Jackie, happy birthday to you!! ❤ (Trust me, you should be glad that you can't hear me singing. 😉 )

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  6. Here is to the happiest birthday of them all!!! And may they keep getting better and better. That’s my wish for you. Now how do I get the copy of the books I want to BUY, autographed?? Your list was wonderful. I liked how you broke it down to decades. I’ll have to give that some thought. I was sitting here this morning having a 10 minute pity party by myself. Can’t see well enough to sew or do much of anything. Making the print so big to see through the damn goop in my eye. 4 more days of this crap and then I’ll be off and running again. I could almost write but the brain is on hold with the eyes. But that gives me time to wish you the mostes and bestes birthday. Hugs.

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    1. Thank you Marlene! It’s going to be a good day, a good good day! 🙂 I love my friends! I will have to look into how I can autograph copies for you. Although the Canine Caper is not out in paperback as it’s just a short story. But I will look into options, my friend.
      I do hope your eye clears up soon and you are back in the saddle again. Big hugs my friend!

      Liked by 1 person

  7. Happy Birthday, Jackie! Frank tipped me off about your party, so I thought I’d stop by for some fun. Great post & thank you so much for your hospitality! Will download your birthday gift book when I leave. Have a great day!

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  8. Happy Birthday, Jackie. You really surprised me, I had no idea you were turning sixty! Neither your writing or your photograph would have me believe that. Yes, you look and act thirty. congrats on your books being published before your birthday. I hope this year is the best yet for you.

    I loved your life lessons by decade. I’m not sure I would want to revisit my life in such a way but it’s an interesting concept to play with.

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    1. Thank you Lois. I don’t usually advertise that I’m this old. LOL But, today I thought, what the heck! I’m just glad I made it this far!
      My avatar photo was taken five years ago when I was a mere 55. 😉
      Our lives have been interesting Lois, nothing wrong with revisiting, because we know we made it through and it can’t hurt us anymore. Big hugs my friend!

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  11. Happy Birthday from Cincinnati to a young pup .. well, at least we would have been in high school at the same time. Love the look at your life my the decades. I bring you two gifts: first, a funny https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JeCD4bIkQwg …. then a song from long ago. Actually one of my all-time favorites, and from your side of the border. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2CPt3eSBJiQ ….Wishing many smiles on your day! … and with hopes of 60 more.

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    1. We are young pups! We have lots of growing to do yet, Frank. 😉
      Thank you so much for the gifts. I remember when Sweet City Woman came out! I was just going into high school. Ah, good music. 🙂 Thanks Frank!

      Liked by 1 person

  13. ♬♪♬ Happy Birthday to You! ♬♪♬

    Happy Birthday, Jackie! Hope you’re having a great day. I love how you broke your life into lessons-learned decades. And what a nice birthday gift to yourself – setting your book free into the wild and watching it climb the charts. Very nice! 🙂

    Here’s to many more birthdays and many more books published! Cheers!!
    xoxoxoxo

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  16. Pingback: In Search of Good Books | insearchofitall

  18. Happy Birthday to you, Jackie!! I sent you a real card too, but of course I was late…so you can celebrate until it arrives 🙂 Your list of learnings was very good…for such a young lady 😀 I hope your day has been wonderful so far!

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    1. I’ll keep on eye out for the card, tiny and thank you! Ohhh, I like the idea of celebrating until it arrives. 😉 My day has been awesome, because of friends like you! ❤

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  21. Happy 60th Birthday! You’re ahead of me by 2.5 years. It’s hard to believe we’re this old isn’t it. But what a gift to live this long. congratulations on becoming a published author!! When I turned 50 I made a mental list of goals I want to reach before I’m 60 – the only one I remember really is that I want to write a book. I have, it’s in print, ready to go on Amazon as an e-book. So we can both be really proud of ourselves!
    The way you broke down your life was really revealing. Not a lot of words, and we know so much.

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    1. Thank you! I still shake my head at being this old, because I don’t feel it. Being published is great and a wonderful achievement. Congrats to you also!

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