Today is my birthday. I was born in 1968, one of those pivotal years in United States history. When I was a kid, I would calculate how old I would be at the turn of the century. The year 2000 looked to be far off in the future, and, well, it was the future. The 1900s would be gone forever.
I never wondered about the years after 2000, but here I am seventeen years later. It is funny that I do not remember much about the year that I thought about as a child. I know that I was not yet teaching. That would begin in 2001. I know that life is better now than it was then. That may be why I do not remember much about it. My mind has blocked out the details.
When I was a kid, I thought a lot about the year 2000. Now, it is fading from memory as the years pass. It is strange how our minds work. It could be that the anticipation sometimes leaves a deeper imprint than the actuality.
Anyway, that is the kind of stuff I think about on my birthday. It is a day in which I go deep inside my mind. There was a time when I tried to do the Magnum, P.I. birthday thing. That show had several episodes about Magnum’s birthday. He always went somewhere to be by himself. However it always turned into a deadly disaster from which he had to be rescued. When I say that I tried to do the Magnum, P.I. birthday thing, I mean that I tried to be by myself all day. It was never deadly, but it never worked.
I guess that is what Magnum, P.I. was trying to show the audience. Birthdays are meant to be shared with people who care. When I was a kid, I thought about where I would be in the year 2000. I never thought about other people being around. I never thought about 2017, but it is great because there are people everywhere.
SBI: A Thinning Crowd 
My son was born in 1969 — another great year and my personal favorite. I remember looking forward to 1986, my 39th birthday because it would be the last year of my thirties — a million years in my future — AND would be the return of Halley’s Comet. On that birthday, a group of us went out into the Judean desert to see the comet. Now, that is … 31 years? … in the past and my son is approaching 50 … and I’m looking at 71.
They say time passes quickly. The funny thing is that the older you get, the faster it spins. Enjoy every single moment and happy birthday!
Thank You! The comet in that setting must have been an amazing sight. These birthdays start running together.
Happy birthday. Did you think about 1999, the last year of the 20th century?
I didn’t think of that. In my childhood mind, 2000 was the magic year.
I was the class of 99 in high school; we felt like the forgotten class because everyone else was focused on 2000…and the Y2k that didn’t happen.
1999 sounds like a cool year to me.