I turned the big 29 today.

How was it, you may ask? Do I feel pensive? Reflective? Am I taking stock of the first 29 years of my life, looking at the next 29, hoping to make the best of them? Does it weigh on me that I only have one remaining year of my 20's, that I'm a relatively new husband and a newer father, that I am quickly approaching the entry gate to a promising and fulfilling career, that I'm beginning to feel the downward pressure of time and energy that I can reasonably dedicate to the number of extracurricular activities I have managed to juggle for nearly three decades, that I am coming to the realization that, despite said downward pressure, I am resisting the
temptation to succumb and forsake goals that have haunted me since my early teens, that I am thankful for a wife who supports me in my endeavors and spurs me to act, to grow and live well, and, in essence, to "crap or get off the pot," to put it crassly, in regards to such goals and dreams, and that, due to this modern age that we live in, 29 isn't all that bad, after all? Do I have an increased sense of mortality that urges me to strengthen my personal relationships, with my beautiful and caring wife and our newborn daughter, with my siblings and parents (highlight this one due to physical distance), with my friends, both old and new, scattered across the continent?

Nah. I'm not in my 30's yet.

Well, maybe a little.

ps- isn't that a scary picture? It makes me look like an ex-con.

End transmission.