Birthdays and stuff

A big happy birthday to my dad, who turned 83 today. As is his custom, there was dinner at the cafeteria followed by cake at home and no further fuss.

While I’m at it, a big happy birthday to me, who turned 44 last Sunday. I allowed slightly more fuss: dinner at Anton’s on Saturday night (as is my custom) and then a lovely day hanging out with my boy (which is something I don’t get to do enough of) on Sunday.

I got lots of cool stuff, much of it books:

• Motoring by John Jakle and Keith Sculle. These are two of my favorite authors: geographers with a road culture and history perspective. When I write my book on the history of the American supermarket, the format will be based on their books on motels, gas stations, and chain restuarants.
• The Five Laws of Library Science by S.R. Ranganathan. Ranganathan is the Jane Jacobs of Library Science, or so I tried to demonstrate in a paper last semester. He described a common sense approach with a rather dry humor. I love this 75-year-old book.
• Atlanta: An Illustrated History by Andy Ambrose. It is what it says it is, but I haven’t read it yet.
• Books on Fire by Lucien Polastron. Again, I haven’t read it yet, but it looks fascinating, touching on historical and current issues surrounding both preservation of and free access to information.
• Popular Culture in the Age of White Flight by Eric Avila. Suburbs, politics, and the restructuring of urban space in postwar Los Angeles, which is, of course, a metaphor for the postward United States.

And then there was my new puppy:

I love having a boy who understands that a big stuffed puppy and an Elmo piñata are absolutely appropriate gifts for a bitter, cynical 44-year-old.