YOU SAY IT'S YOUR BIRTHDAY!

FOR MISTERPHER CHRISTOPHER

(THE POPE)

We met way back in 1979 (before many of my readers were even born!). It was in Mr. Seitz's history class in an upstairs room overlooking the courtyard of a little brick church called Churchill Way Presbyterian. It was home to a school called Lutheran High. Neither of us was Lutheran or Presbyterian. Figure that one out! Instantly, we began to argue about whose influence was greater - Bob Dylan or the Beatles? And then about who was the better quarterback - Namath or Staubach? And then about who was the best pop/rock act of the seventies - Elton John or Led Zeppelin? And then about which was the better sport - hockey or football? And then about ... well, you get the picture! Obviously, there weren't any right answers to these questions. But that didn't stop us from arguing! But there were things we agreed upon. Disco - to coin a phrase - sucked! Little did we know that these adolescent beginnings would lead to decades of misadventures (including a near drowning incident {while both of us were still in my car}, near fatal cat scratchings, nearly getting lost forever in the desert {"Dude, where are we?"}, nearly getting permanently lost in piney east Texas, nearly getting hit by an oncoming train on the way to a Paul McCartney concert ... that we nearly got to see ... ). Luckily, we survived! And now ... we're old men. But I still think the Beatles were better!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BUDDY!