Writer’s Note … I had the post below written and ready to go for today, but then I woke up to the most amazing surprise. Two of my best friends out there wrote their posts today about ME! Stupid, boring, pain in the ass me. And I honestly could not be more flattered. My family wasn’t even awake yet and I was already smiling from ear to ear. So, you know, please read my stupid post but, even more so, please take a look at the posts of two of the sweetest people I know. And then keep on reading them. They’re WAY funnier than me anyway. Thanks, you guys!
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Dear ODNT Family,
Is it appropriate for me to write something about my own birthday? It feels weird doing it … but it feels even weirder ignoring it. So …
Happy Birthday to Me!
Today is my birthday. June 11. There’s actually a lot of great people born in June along with me. So, I picked 30 of them to honor today, listing each one on his or her actual birthday (i.e., 1 = June 1st and so on). I also listed my reasons for honoring them, even when those reasons sounded a little off the wall.
So, without further ado, I give you …
The 30 People Who Can Share My Birthday Crown
1 – Marilyn Monroe Because she’s a not-stick-thin hottie and standing next to her might make me look skinny.
2 – Jerry Mathers Because he had to go by the name ‘Beaver’ all those years.
3 – Suzi Quatro Because I’m still copying Leather Tuscadero’s hair. Although I could never master the snapping thing.
4 – Russell Brand Because his voice alone cracks me up. Forgive me?
5 – Kenny G Because including Kenny G on this list is simply hilarious to me.
6 – Robert Englund Because, without him, we might not have our June 9th honoree. Plus I was too scared to leave him out.
7 – Michael Cera Because his ‘George Michael Bluth’ reminds me SO much of my boy. “Breakfast?”
8 – Jerry Stiller Because of Frank Costanza. Enough said.
9 – Johnny Depp Because … well, duh. Have you been paying attention at all?
10 – Ruth DeBlanc Because she’s my grandmother, she’s awesome and she would have been 100 years old yesterday.
11 – Gene Wilder Because of …“Blucher!”
12 – Anne Frank Because she’s incredible and helped to get me reading as a kid.
13 – Paul Lynde Because I watched Uncle Arthur on Bewitched every afternoon. And because he somehow, amazingly, never came out of the closet.
14 – Boy George Because I dressed up as that man more times than I care to admit. And even won a contest once.
15 – Neil Patrick Harris Because he’s a fellow theater junkie. And because he plays a lothario on How I Met Your Mother.
16 – Laurie Metcalf Because Jackie was always way funnier than Roseanne.
17 – Barry Manilow Because he is music and he writes the songs (that make the whole world sing).
18 – Paul McCartney Because he’s Paul freakin’ McCartney. Seriously?
19 – Mia Sara Because I thought she was cool as Sloane Peterson. What ever happened to her?
20 – John Taylor Because of Duran Duran. And this mention is my shout out to all five of them.
21 –Leo Sayer Because he wrote some of the super groovy tunes I played in my early guitar days.
22 – Cyndi Lauper Because I met her once when she was with her son and she seemed like a really good mom.
23 – Bob Fosse Because of … Jazz Hands!
24 –Michele Lee Because she was the first person I ever saw who spelled her name the same way I do.
25 – Mike Myers Because of So I Married An Axe Murderer. Rent it.
26 – Jeff DeBlanc – Because he’s my grandfather and the only one here giving my grandmother a run for her money.
27 – Captain Kangaroo Because he gave me something to watch on TV when I was a kid. BEFORE cable.
28 – Mel Brooks Because of Young Frankenstein, Blazing Saddles & The Producers.
29 – Bret McKenzie Because of Jenny and everything he and Jemaine do in Flight of the Conchords.
30 – Ken Olin Because I so loved Thirtysomething back in the day.
Assembling this list was no small task but I had fun doing it. There were a few hard choices to make on some of the days and I was forced to leave out a number of pretty choice people. But I could only pick one person per day. Without rules, THERE WOULD BE ANARCHY… or maybe just too long of a post.
Anyway, I need to go celebrate my birthday. When I was nine, my family surprised me with tickets to see Donny & Marie live in concert. Who knows what this year will bring? Honestly, all I’m really looking for is a stress-free day where everyone is happy and my face hurts from so much smiling. And cheese.
Thanks for listening,
The Birthday Girl


