01/26/2004: "Gifts from above (or below???)"

A story of birthday gifts from my guardian angel.

or

Free stuff is always more fun.

It was June 6th, 1999. A Sunday, and the day before my birthday. I was feeling a little sorry for myself, as I knew that, for the first time in many years, I would not be getting a birthday present on my actual birthday. To cheer myself up, I decided to take a drive down to "Toys'R'Us", and buy myself the biggest, nastiest water pistol they have. Unfortunately, it seems that water pistols are a summer-time toy, and for some reason, by June they had already cleared out their summer stocks in order to make way for the winter ones.

So, even more depressed, I headed back home. Well, depressed isn't really the word for it, just feeling kind of low. I turned my pickup truck onto Curie Drive, the street just before my house, and there by the side of the road was a leather recliner rocker, with a sign saying "Free" stuck on it. The sign may as well have said "Happy Birthday Chris"! I screeched to a halt, leaped out, and quickly heaved the leather chair into the back of my pickup, before the fates could change their minds and take it away from me again.

I drove the last two hundred yards to my house with a huge grin on my face. I manhandled the recliner into the back garden, grabbed a beer, and spent the rest of the afternoon stretched out in the sun on my new leather throne. The next day, my birthday, I was happy all day, and rushed home after work, to once more bask in the rays of the setting sun on my most auspicious birthday present.

The chair lasted for many years, and was the scene of many enjoyable memories. It was the most sought after seat in the house at parties, and was always warm in the summer sunset looking out over my back garden. Time took its toll however, as did the teething efforts of a certain puppy dog known as Bear! After a while, the chair started to sag and fall apart, and during a clean-up effort in Spring of 2003, it was finally laid to rest. I was sad to see it go, but I knew that I had given that chair a second chance, making its twilight years full of joy.

That would be a nice story just by itself, but there is more. The date is now June 7th, 2003. A Saturday, and once more, my birthday. I had organised a party this time, and the house was full of children laughter, and life. My friend Damien arrived, and asked me if I had seen the couch that was on the curb on Currie Drive, with a "free" sign on it! This was too good to be true, another present from my Guardian angel. We dashed off to take a look, and saw a fine blue couch, the sort that has two recliners and a center section. It was a little worn around the edges, but would fit the bill perfectly in front of my projection screen. We grabbed it and dragged it back home.

Taking a closer look, I noticed a power cord dangling from under the couch. It was a little frayed, but a quick re-wire job later, and I had the vibro-massage working! I've always wanted a vibro-massage couch, but its not the sort of thing I would ever actually buy. My guardian angel just knows me too well.... So now, when I need to relax, I grab a beer, recline my couch, and throw on the virbo-massage. MmMmMmMmmm.