Happy Birthday, Sandy!

Yeah, Another Blogger

Seeing that a person’s birthday comes but once a year, celebrating it in a substantial way is a damn good idea. Even though my wife Sandy and I don’t always follow that philosophy, a couple of weeks ago we did. Having booked a hotel room in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA for Sandy’s birthday (the big day itself, plus the two days bookending it), we dipped into The City Of Brotherly Love’s many offerings and, as is almost always the case when we’re there, had a fine time.

Jules Goldman Books And Art, an eye-popping store.
Empty building that once housed the Painted Bride Art Center. Isaiah Zagar’s mosaic mural covers the building.
A portion of the mosaic mural at the rear of the building.

What did we do? We had two great restaurant dinners, for one thing, meals that we won’t soon forget. We took in a movie (Barbie, which Sandy, unlike me, liked a lot). We wandered into Jules Goldman Books And Art, one of the most mind-blowingly jumbled stores I’ve ever seen. And we gazed in wonder at the mosaic mural (by Isaiah Zagar) covering all sides of the long-vacant building that once housed the Painted Bride Art Center. Sandy and I saw loads of terrific music and dance performances at the Bride, and truly miss it. (The Painted Bride Art Center still exits. It’s at a different location now, and is but the merest shadow, arts-wise, of its former world-class self.) The building’s and the mosaic mural’s fates, tied up in litigation for a number of years, are uncertain. Demolition is a real possibility. If that comes to pass, Philadelphia will lose a treasure.

The painting popularly known as Whistler’s Mother.

The birthday girl and I also went to the Philadelphia Museum Of Art. In that enormous institution we viewed hundreds of artworks, including the world-famous painting popularly known as Whistler’s Mother, on loan from a museum in Paris. I was expecting to poo-poo the picture, but the more I looked at it, the more I liked it. It’s a well-designed creation, quite riveting, whose true title (Arrangement In Grey And Black No. 1) is a good description of what the artist James Whistler was going after, and accomplished, when his mother Anna posed for him in 1871.

The building in which I once lived (Clinton Street, Philadelphia).

I could mention plenty more activities, but I’ll limit myself to one. A very personal one. Namely, our visit to a central Philadelphia neighborhood we both were familiar with, and within which we very likely crossed paths many years before we formally met in 1990.

I moved to Philadelphia in 1974, taking up residence on Clinton Street, a leafy block with any number of fine old houses. I lived there for 14 months in an apartment building, the one nondescript structure on Clinton, during which time Sandy worked two blocks away. Did we pass one another, maybe more than once, on the street? Did we chow down in a neighborhood eatery at the same time? We’ll never know, but I’m guessing yes. On the day before her birthday, we reminisced about those long-ago days as we strolled along a bunch of blocks in the Clinton Street area.

To continue: As noted above, our paths crossed in 1990. Meaningfully too. This occurred at a singles event near Philadelphia’s Delaware River waterfront. Sandy and I, each of us far removed from our Clinton-Street-neighborhood days, clicked right from the start and have been together ever since. I don’t believe in fate or anything like that. But it’s cool that, unbeknownst to us, we were part of the same picture all those years before, in a sense just waiting for our stories to entwine.

Now, this being a piece about a special occasion, I’ll conclude the proceedings with blasts of good cheer and high energy. And I’ll turn to The Beatles to handle the honors. Their hard-rocking song Birthday appears on what has come to be known as The White Album. John Lennon and Paul McCartney wrote Birthday quickly in the recording studio in September 1968. A few hours later, the band, McCartney handling lead vocals, put it on tape. Man, in no time at all a classic was birthed.

It’s inarguable that Paul McCartney calling Sandy and singing Birthday over the phone to her would be better than my presenting her with The Beatles’ recorded version. Maybe one day, in an alternate universe, that will happen. But for now, the original, in all its glory, will suffice beautifully. And so, once again . . . happy birthday, Sandy!

150 thoughts on “Happy Birthday, Sandy!”

  1. andrewcferguson September 8, 2023 / 4:32 pm

    That sounds like a great way to celebrate Sandy’s birthday – as ever, you’re an inspiration!

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  3. ckennedy September 10, 2023 / 9:49 am

    Happy birthday to Sandy! It sounds like you both had a wonderful time.

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  4. maristravels September 10, 2023 / 1:09 pm

    Nice blog, we don’t hear much from Philly – at least on this side of the Atlantic – so this was doubly enjoyable. And, loved the music!

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    • Yeah, Another Blogger September 10, 2023 / 2:30 pm

      Hello Mari. Thanks for stopping by. Philadelphia has a lot going for it. It’s strong in the arts, restaurants, parks, beautiful neighborhoods. I like Philadelphia a lot.

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  6. Shelley@QuaintRevival.com September 11, 2023 / 6:07 am

    Aw, what a wonderful birthday celebration! Happy Birthday, Sandy!! I enjoyed strolling along with you hearing/seeing where you went. Glad you enjoyed yourselves and that Sandy had a grand time. My hubby and I have been together since meeting in 1988, married in 1989, and have been together in the home we built since 1990 – so your tales of you and Sandy possibly crossing paths before you officially got together resonated with our story too. I wonder if that type of pre-meeting before falling in love story is a thing of the past or still happens nowadays? Excellent song too!

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  7. Linda Griffin September 11, 2023 / 7:33 am

    Give Sandy my warmest regards. Sounds like her birthday was pretty happy.
    And thanks for sharing your “cute meet”. I love a love story. (I’m betting you at least passed on that Pa street a time or two)

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    • Yeah, Another Blogger September 11, 2023 / 10:16 am

      Morning, Linda. The high probability we passed each other on the street or were in a store or restaurant at the same time, always has intrigued me. It adds an interesting element to my and Sandy’s story.

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  8. Michele Anderson September 11, 2023 / 3:49 pm

    Happy Birthday to Sandy! Sounds like you two had a wonderful time. Cheers to you both!

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  10. eden baylee September 11, 2023 / 9:33 pm

    Great read and song choice! So nice you’re using your popular platform to wish Sandy a Happy Birthday. Hope you’re continuing to celebrate for the rest of the month!

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      • eden baylee September 12, 2023 / 10:27 am

        I’m glad you did. It’s good to celebrate at every opportunity given the way the world is going!

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  12. J P September 15, 2023 / 5:51 pm

    Happy belated birthday to Sandy! That sounds like a great way to spend a weekend.

    I have to confess that I have never been a fan of The Beatles’ version of Happy Birthday. It is like sandpaper across the knuckles for me – I can endure it infrequently and in short bursts, but that’s my limit. Also, when you book a hotel room, are the first and last nights always called bookends? 🙂

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  13. kunstkitchen September 16, 2023 / 3:31 pm

    Cool post. I lived in Philadelphia! Good memories of the days of summer I spent there.

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    • Yeah, Another Blogger September 16, 2023 / 5:46 pm

      Thanks for stopping by. Yeah, Philadelphia has a lot going for it. There’s a wide range of things to do there.

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  14. alhenry September 16, 2023 / 4:53 pm

    Now, Jules Goldman Books is MY kind of bookstore. I love those jumbled up book shops with their stacks and stacks, shelves and shelves, tables and tables of…BOOKS! Sounds like you and Sandy did her birthday up royally. And that’s as it should be.

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    • Yeah, Another Blogger September 16, 2023 / 6:20 pm

      That store is unreal. And it’s big too. I think it was 100 or more feet from front to back.

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  16. rkrontheroad September 18, 2023 / 9:09 am

    Sounds like a great getaway celebration, especially the visit to the old neighborhood. Glad you guys entwined! I would love to explore that book and art shop.

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  18. Geoff Stamper September 18, 2023 / 11:53 pm

    I remember a story of a couple who got married and found each other in the same old photograph at Disneyland long before they officially met. Keep searching for something like that!

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    • Yeah, Another Blogger September 19, 2023 / 7:50 am

      Hi Geoff. Thanks for stopping by. This thought just occurred to me: We cross paths with hundreds of thousands of people, maybe millions of people, in our lives. But we never get to know 99.9999999999999% of those folks.

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      • Geoff Stamper September 24, 2023 / 12:37 am

        I am fascinated with how many people we come in contact with or who are in our proximity. I was in London on business when the attorney I was with ran into her neighbor. I was standing next to Queen Latifah in a huge crowd at Obama’s inauguration and did not recognize her until members of the National Guard started asking to take her picture. I know so many other stories I have traded with others. I guess that’s why people play Six Degrees to Kevin Bacon.

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        • Yeah, Another Blogger September 24, 2023 / 7:14 am

          Hi Geoff. You’ve reminded me of something that happened to me in 1970. I was visiting San Francisco (I lived at the time near New York City). I went to a rock concert, and leaving the show I bumped into a guy I had gone to high school with on the east coast. Small world!

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  19. markbierman September 30, 2023 / 2:45 pm

    First, Happy belated birthday to Sandy! It looks like your trip had a full itinerary, including a visit to the place where you probably unknowingly crossed paths before meeting.

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  21. Silver Screenings October 8, 2023 / 8:35 pm

    Happy Belated Birthday to Sandy! And what a wonderful way to spend the special day. I’m impressed you saw Whistler’s Mother. That is one I’d like to see in person.

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