Firstly, happy birthday. And don't mind the sixth decade - life continues to get even better, trust me!
And how beautiful is little Posy? She's gorgeous. What stories she could tell. My mum's and dad's first car (when I was a baby) was a Morris Minor. Do you know if Posy was renovated? Such a collector's item!
And thank you for that calculator. Of course, I wanted to!!!!
It confirmed what I've always believed - Australia Day! But how about this? Like you and your schoolfriends all conceived on a special day, my brother was conceived on Australia Day, exactly 4 years later. Well done Dad and Mum!!!
This was a wonderful post, Rebecca - poignant (dear Posy) but fun and informative and so you. Thank you.
Thank you, Prue! 🥳 That sixth decade of mine had better brace itself, I tell you! 🤣 I'm going to enjoy this last year of my fifth while I make lots of lovely juicy plans for what comes next.
Posy was beautiful. I'm sorry to say that she was scrapped. And to my enduring sadness the DVLA (Driving and Vehicle Licensing Agency) didn't permit me to keep her registration under their 'cherished numberplate' scheme in order that I could use it for another car. Her number was absolutely brilliant, and I still miss it. And her, of course. 😕
Wow, you're an Australia Day baby! And that's amazing about your brother, too - what patriots your parents were! 🤣 I've often wondered which date in January had been the special one for Jim's parents, given that they had two children with a three-year age gap sharing a birthday.
Do you know, Jim is the first person I've heard of that shares a siblings birthday but a few years apart. I never minded sharing birthdays and parties with my brother at all because I never knew anything else. I suppose it's similar to how twins might feel. And like Jim, I'll never forget the sibling's birthday!
Oh poor Posy... so sad. But lovely to have the memories of her trusty little frame carting you here and there.
I'm not sure his sister has ever quite forgiven him...! 😉 One of my favourite pictures of the two of them, actually, is the group shot taken at their joint 21st and 18th birthday party. 🥳
I'm still sad about Posy, but I've got such lovely memories. Beep beeeeeep!
You and my eldest son are the same age. He was born near the very end of January. (30th)
I used to think I was adopted, because I was the eldest and only girl in a succession of brothers. Oh how I longed for a sister. But my mother told me later in life, after I’d asked her the “Was I adopted” question, “No way! Your father and I tried too hard for two years after getting married to conceive you!”
My mom, who was basically a tea-totaler, related that Dad had gotten her tipsy on New Years Eve, and I came along at 10:35 PM on October 1st that same year. I was bummed. It ruined my fantasies of having been snatched at birth from a castle in a far off country. At eleven years old I felt more like Cinderella having to be caregiver to three wicked younger insufferable brothers while my mom worked nights. (Dad was gone by then, took off and married the baby sitter.) True story.
I still love and keep in touch with my step-mom, she was like the sister I never had at only 12 years my senior.
Another wonderful read. Happy sigh. (Happy birthday too!) I can’t remember all the things I wanted to comment on, but there were a LOT of emotions on the way through.
- I must admit I’ve never thought about the date of conception potentially being an embarrassing fact!! You learn something every day. Smirk.
- I ADORED the photos. (And I remember those photos of you in the shower. You’re doing well for 26. Grin.)
- The health stutter was clearly a time of great angst! I’m so glad you are still here with us today.
- and we never forget our first car. Or our first job.
So much in here to love. Thanks so much dear Rebecca. 🤗🤗😘😘🌼🌼
Oh Beth, thank you so much. (Especially for the smirk - you're on my wavelength with the *cringe*!)
LOL re shower photos - gosh, that had been such a fun post to write. Actually I'm going to link it here in case anybody reading the comments is wondering what we're talking about! 🤣
Oh, and I'm still here, don't worry, and in fine fettle! But thank you so much. I wish I could say the same for Posy. And goodness me, I'm very glad I don't have that job any more....! 🤣
Thanks, Olga! It's such a cool site, isn't it?! And it's so funny that many commenters on this post are finding that their life was kindled on a holiday! 🤣 Happy Easter/birthday! 🤣
Happiest of birthdays, Rebecca!! I hope it was lovely and you were surrounded by so much love from family and friends. There are so many things I could write in response to this wonderful, bordering on tender, post. Birthdays are a big deal, and a great touchstone for reflection. I think you and I share similar experiences, car-related and otherwise. I relate to your response when folks want to know your age. 😄 My answer to that is "30 something". What makes life fantastic, year over year, is an open heart to wisdom and learning, and running after awareness and the depth of our experiences. Cheers to you! Happy, happy, happy birthday!!! P.S. I ADORE the pics of you as a child, and your car. I want that car. Beyond precious. 🎂
Thank you so much, Mary! '30 something' is such a great reply!
Posy would have appreciated your compliment - she really was that gorgeous. I wish I had more pictures - her insides were beautiful, too - cream and blue vinyl upholstery, blue carpet. Sigh. That shade of blue is still my favourite colour in the world. Her steering wheel and (replaced) pressed aluminium front numberplate are still in my parent's garage.
Thank you for such a lovely comment - you're so kind! 😊
Rebecca, Happy birthday! It seems we have yet another thing in common, a November birthday! Do you enjoy your birthday as much as I do? What fun this post was. I love the photos of the Morris Minor, such a cute car! I agree with Prue below, I continue to enjoy my life more with each decade! 💜
Thank you, Sue! Yay for us November-born! I have to say that as a child I didn't like having a birthday around this time because it's the season of bonfire night and fireworks and dark and smoke and big bangs and crowds and all of the other things I really hate.... BUT there is plenty to love about it, too. It gets dark early, so it's really cosy. I like looking at rain through windows, especially when I don't HAVE to go out in it. In November it is acceptable to have the central heating on, so that's a plus - birthday cake in the warm! I love that in my family we don't talk about Christmas until AFTER my birthday, so it's a lovely pre-Christmas milestone. And actually I love being linked to Valentine's Day! 😉 So yes, I guess I do enjoy my birthday!
I never drew the connection about Valentine's Day until I read your post. I also love the rain, staying in cozy, but I also love bonfires, fireworks, lightning, darkness, etc.! We'll hang together without mentioning Christmas until our birthdays have come and gone! 💜
Happy birthday Rebecca! I'm a few months older than you, and I too used to be stuck on 26!! I think that's because my friends and I used to say, incredulously so, that we'd be 26 in the year 2000, as though it might never happen. I've struggled to remember my actual age throughout my 40's ( just from being rubbish with numbers) and was quite excited to reach half a century. I am relieved to find that each stage really does value and need different things, and whilst the body starts to creak, I like the different perspective.
Loving the photos capturing your joy and your classic car. I can't bring myself to check conception time though...some things are best left unknown...!💜
Thanks, Mya! Gosh, the 26 thing is such a coincidence - how lovely!
It's funny - since I started always thinking that I'm 26 I've ALWAYS had to do the maths to work out what my actual age IS - it sounds bonkers, but like you it's been a struggle to remember! I guess that my NEXT birthday, starting with a zero, will make all that much, much easier! 🤣
LOL to not being sucked in by that website! All power to you! 🙌
Yes, I used to try and do the maths using my birth year and under the pressure of having to deliver a prompt and accurate number, would invariably appear flustered and fail...a nice clean decade is a delight for me, I think you too shall benefit enormously 😂!
Thank you, Rebecca, but i fear I have little merit really, just too squeamish for words...!
LOL, Amran - I'm going to view every Virgo I meet from now on with added respect - Christmas would have been a busy time for their parents already without all that going on....! 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
Happy birthday! We are almost birthday twins - mine is Guy Fawkes Day (which we don’t celebrate but I want to burn a Guy on my birthday some year, dammit). Today is my dad’s birthday. He turned thirty, then promptly became a father the next day. It was a busy week for phone calls home.
Thanks, Alison! Happy birthday for tomorrow! And gosh, that's amazing timing, to have been born the day after your dad's birthday - that's really lovely! 🥳🥳
There are always fireworks going off, and people setting light to things. I remember one birthday party at home when I was very little, and Dad set off some fireworks in the drive. I didn't like that at all - dark, bangy, cold, dark.... ugh!!! Tonight in Lewes, the town not far from here, is the country's biggest and oldest bonfire night celebration (it's a day early this year, because the 5th itself is a Sunday). It's absolutely bucketing down with rain at the moment just as things will all be kicking off - that's a bit of a shame. https://www.lewesbonfirecelebrations.com
1. Buy a zimmer frame now because the prices are bound to go up.
2. Get rid of Jim and get yourself a toy boy.
3. Do I what I've done. I now identify as a 25 year-old
Glad to have bin of help
We had a Morris minor too, till I wrote it off. Same colour as well, except mine was the estate version. I loved that car. It seemed so simple compared with today's ones!
LOL! Thank you for your very kind suggestions, Terry. I'll let you know in due course what steps I've taken... Actually, I'm not going ahead with step 2, because I enjoy my status as 'younger wife' too much, thanks! 🥳 #agegap
I loved the Morris Traveller, too! Ah, the half-timbered version of an already-gorgeous classic - beautiful. Mum's first car - 'Mercury' - had been a black 1955 split-screen MM saloon, but on a significant birthday many years later she acquired a green 1971 MM Traveller called 'Horti' - short for 'Horticultural Vehicle'. My brother's 21st birthday present was a 1970 MM Traveller in Old English White with a red coachline - she was 'Sybil'. We were a family of three Minors for some time! All are now gone - but Horti lives on, because he was sold to a young chap for restoration. 😊
A new orbit! How fortunate! Wishing you so much joy. The 50s are an amazing time. Many women I've known really come into their own in that decade.
I can't tell you how often I've puzzled at the way we calculate age in the Western world. But, even more perplexing, in my opinion, is that we inadvertently follow the same calculation rule for other sorts of things. For instance, in 1998 I helped launch our local farmers market. When it came time to recognize our 25th year, there was a lot of deliberation. Some felt it should wait until 2023, but others, like me, agreed that the proper year was 2022. Otherwise, it would be as though we totally discounted our first season.
I don't need a website to identify my date of conception; my mother spilled those beans many years ago when I admired a photo of her at a Halloween costume party. She winked at my dad and said, "You know what happened that night..." 😳😊🤣
I had a bit of a 🤯 when I was thinking about the numbers! It's difficult, isn't it? I mean, we all start life in our first year, but we're not one until the end, and of course you were absolutely right to count 2022 as the 25th anniversary of the market which had started in 1998 - because the market didn't turn one until it had been running for a whole twelve months! I'm still in my forties, yet I'm in my fiftieth year... and next year I start my sixth decade - it's like three big heavy chunks of time raining down on me all at once! 🤣
Thanks, Mitchell!
I saw my parents - both subscribers to my newsletter - today.
Question: 'Am I in trouble?'
Reply, in unison: 'YES!'
😉🤣
Firstly, happy birthday. And don't mind the sixth decade - life continues to get even better, trust me!
And how beautiful is little Posy? She's gorgeous. What stories she could tell. My mum's and dad's first car (when I was a baby) was a Morris Minor. Do you know if Posy was renovated? Such a collector's item!
And thank you for that calculator. Of course, I wanted to!!!!
It confirmed what I've always believed - Australia Day! But how about this? Like you and your schoolfriends all conceived on a special day, my brother was conceived on Australia Day, exactly 4 years later. Well done Dad and Mum!!!
This was a wonderful post, Rebecca - poignant (dear Posy) but fun and informative and so you. Thank you.
Thank you, Prue! 🥳 That sixth decade of mine had better brace itself, I tell you! 🤣 I'm going to enjoy this last year of my fifth while I make lots of lovely juicy plans for what comes next.
Posy was beautiful. I'm sorry to say that she was scrapped. And to my enduring sadness the DVLA (Driving and Vehicle Licensing Agency) didn't permit me to keep her registration under their 'cherished numberplate' scheme in order that I could use it for another car. Her number was absolutely brilliant, and I still miss it. And her, of course. 😕
Wow, you're an Australia Day baby! And that's amazing about your brother, too - what patriots your parents were! 🤣 I've often wondered which date in January had been the special one for Jim's parents, given that they had two children with a three-year age gap sharing a birthday.
Do you know, Jim is the first person I've heard of that shares a siblings birthday but a few years apart. I never minded sharing birthdays and parties with my brother at all because I never knew anything else. I suppose it's similar to how twins might feel. And like Jim, I'll never forget the sibling's birthday!
Oh poor Posy... so sad. But lovely to have the memories of her trusty little frame carting you here and there.
I'm not sure his sister has ever quite forgiven him...! 😉 One of my favourite pictures of the two of them, actually, is the group shot taken at their joint 21st and 18th birthday party. 🥳
I'm still sad about Posy, but I've got such lovely memories. Beep beeeeeep!
I agree, Prue, life continues to excite and amaze me. 💜
You and my eldest son are the same age. He was born near the very end of January. (30th)
I used to think I was adopted, because I was the eldest and only girl in a succession of brothers. Oh how I longed for a sister. But my mother told me later in life, after I’d asked her the “Was I adopted” question, “No way! Your father and I tried too hard for two years after getting married to conceive you!”
My mom, who was basically a tea-totaler, related that Dad had gotten her tipsy on New Years Eve, and I came along at 10:35 PM on October 1st that same year. I was bummed. It ruined my fantasies of having been snatched at birth from a castle in a far off country. At eleven years old I felt more like Cinderella having to be caregiver to three wicked younger insufferable brothers while my mom worked nights. (Dad was gone by then, took off and married the baby sitter.) True story.
I still love and keep in touch with my step-mom, she was like the sister I never had at only 12 years my senior.
Gail, I love that New Year's Eve story! And that you get on so well with your stepmother - that sounds like a really special relationship. 😊
Another wonderful read. Happy sigh. (Happy birthday too!) I can’t remember all the things I wanted to comment on, but there were a LOT of emotions on the way through.
- I must admit I’ve never thought about the date of conception potentially being an embarrassing fact!! You learn something every day. Smirk.
- I ADORED the photos. (And I remember those photos of you in the shower. You’re doing well for 26. Grin.)
- The health stutter was clearly a time of great angst! I’m so glad you are still here with us today.
- and we never forget our first car. Or our first job.
So much in here to love. Thanks so much dear Rebecca. 🤗🤗😘😘🌼🌼
Oh Beth, thank you so much. (Especially for the smirk - you're on my wavelength with the *cringe*!)
LOL re shower photos - gosh, that had been such a fun post to write. Actually I'm going to link it here in case anybody reading the comments is wondering what we're talking about! 🤣
https://rebeccaholden.substack.com/p/27-too-tall-to-shower
Oh, and I'm still here, don't worry, and in fine fettle! But thank you so much. I wish I could say the same for Posy. And goodness me, I'm very glad I don't have that job any more....! 🤣
Happy birthday. *HG*
I went to the site you referred to and I found this:
-----
I was conceived between Apr 7-15, 1972 (might have been conceived on Easter).
Number one song was "A Horse With No Name" by AMERICA.
Number one film was THE GODFATHER.
I share a birthday with Kate Bosworth, Dax Shephard and Cuba Gooding Jr.
-----
Thanks, Olga! It's such a cool site, isn't it?! And it's so funny that many commenters on this post are finding that their life was kindled on a holiday! 🤣 Happy Easter/birthday! 🤣
There's a twist to my birth story.
I was supposed to be born on Dec 26th. But I didn't make my arrival until Jan 2nd.
So I started off my life late. :).
Wow!!! That's amazing, Olga - you weren't just late, you were a calendar YEAR late! That's incredible! 😁
That's me.
Doing things both the hard way and in my own way. Ha ha!
Happiest of birthdays, Rebecca!! I hope it was lovely and you were surrounded by so much love from family and friends. There are so many things I could write in response to this wonderful, bordering on tender, post. Birthdays are a big deal, and a great touchstone for reflection. I think you and I share similar experiences, car-related and otherwise. I relate to your response when folks want to know your age. 😄 My answer to that is "30 something". What makes life fantastic, year over year, is an open heart to wisdom and learning, and running after awareness and the depth of our experiences. Cheers to you! Happy, happy, happy birthday!!! P.S. I ADORE the pics of you as a child, and your car. I want that car. Beyond precious. 🎂
Thank you so much, Mary! '30 something' is such a great reply!
Posy would have appreciated your compliment - she really was that gorgeous. I wish I had more pictures - her insides were beautiful, too - cream and blue vinyl upholstery, blue carpet. Sigh. That shade of blue is still my favourite colour in the world. Her steering wheel and (replaced) pressed aluminium front numberplate are still in my parent's garage.
Thank you for such a lovely comment - you're so kind! 😊
Happy B-Day! You are but a youngster, Rebecca. : )
🤣 Thanks, James! 🥳
Rebecca, Happy birthday! It seems we have yet another thing in common, a November birthday! Do you enjoy your birthday as much as I do? What fun this post was. I love the photos of the Morris Minor, such a cute car! I agree with Prue below, I continue to enjoy my life more with each decade! 💜
Thank you, Sue! Yay for us November-born! I have to say that as a child I didn't like having a birthday around this time because it's the season of bonfire night and fireworks and dark and smoke and big bangs and crowds and all of the other things I really hate.... BUT there is plenty to love about it, too. It gets dark early, so it's really cosy. I like looking at rain through windows, especially when I don't HAVE to go out in it. In November it is acceptable to have the central heating on, so that's a plus - birthday cake in the warm! I love that in my family we don't talk about Christmas until AFTER my birthday, so it's a lovely pre-Christmas milestone. And actually I love being linked to Valentine's Day! 😉 So yes, I guess I do enjoy my birthday!
Happy November birthday to you, too, Sue! ♥️
I never drew the connection about Valentine's Day until I read your post. I also love the rain, staying in cozy, but I also love bonfires, fireworks, lightning, darkness, etc.! We'll hang together without mentioning Christmas until our birthdays have come and gone! 💜
LOL - but I bet you can't STOP thinking about the connection now, right?! 🤣 (Sorry!)
Happy birthday Rebecca! I'm a few months older than you, and I too used to be stuck on 26!! I think that's because my friends and I used to say, incredulously so, that we'd be 26 in the year 2000, as though it might never happen. I've struggled to remember my actual age throughout my 40's ( just from being rubbish with numbers) and was quite excited to reach half a century. I am relieved to find that each stage really does value and need different things, and whilst the body starts to creak, I like the different perspective.
Loving the photos capturing your joy and your classic car. I can't bring myself to check conception time though...some things are best left unknown...!💜
Thanks, Mya! Gosh, the 26 thing is such a coincidence - how lovely!
It's funny - since I started always thinking that I'm 26 I've ALWAYS had to do the maths to work out what my actual age IS - it sounds bonkers, but like you it's been a struggle to remember! I guess that my NEXT birthday, starting with a zero, will make all that much, much easier! 🤣
LOL to not being sucked in by that website! All power to you! 🙌
Yes, I used to try and do the maths using my birth year and under the pressure of having to deliver a prompt and accurate number, would invariably appear flustered and fail...a nice clean decade is a delight for me, I think you too shall benefit enormously 😂!
Thank you, Rebecca, but i fear I have little merit really, just too squeamish for words...!
🤣 Yay for the simpler maths! 😊
And some things are better left - I get it, I really do. 😘
I'm September 4, a Virgo. There are so many Virgos because there's so much poor decision-making from December 24 through December 31.
Anyway, happy birthday!
LOL, Amran - I'm going to view every Virgo I meet from now on with added respect - Christmas would have been a busy time for their parents already without all that going on....! 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
Happy birthday! We are almost birthday twins - mine is Guy Fawkes Day (which we don’t celebrate but I want to burn a Guy on my birthday some year, dammit). Today is my dad’s birthday. He turned thirty, then promptly became a father the next day. It was a busy week for phone calls home.
Thanks, Alison! Happy birthday for tomorrow! And gosh, that's amazing timing, to have been born the day after your dad's birthday - that's really lovely! 🥳🥳
There are always fireworks going off, and people setting light to things. I remember one birthday party at home when I was very little, and Dad set off some fireworks in the drive. I didn't like that at all - dark, bangy, cold, dark.... ugh!!! Tonight in Lewes, the town not far from here, is the country's biggest and oldest bonfire night celebration (it's a day early this year, because the 5th itself is a Sunday). It's absolutely bucketing down with rain at the moment just as things will all be kicking off - that's a bit of a shame. https://www.lewesbonfirecelebrations.com
Have a lovely birthday tomorrow! 🥳
Wait! In that newspaper clipping I sent you, https://terryfreedman.substack.com/p/reply-to-rebecca-22, it says you are 27. I don't understand it. My (unsolicited) advice to you, now that you are almost a pensioner, is:
1. Buy a zimmer frame now because the prices are bound to go up.
2. Get rid of Jim and get yourself a toy boy.
3. Do I what I've done. I now identify as a 25 year-old
Glad to have bin of help
We had a Morris minor too, till I wrote it off. Same colour as well, except mine was the estate version. I loved that car. It seemed so simple compared with today's ones!
Lovely analogy about the wheels coming off.
LOL! Thank you for your very kind suggestions, Terry. I'll let you know in due course what steps I've taken... Actually, I'm not going ahead with step 2, because I enjoy my status as 'younger wife' too much, thanks! 🥳 #agegap
I loved the Morris Traveller, too! Ah, the half-timbered version of an already-gorgeous classic - beautiful. Mum's first car - 'Mercury' - had been a black 1955 split-screen MM saloon, but on a significant birthday many years later she acquired a green 1971 MM Traveller called 'Horti' - short for 'Horticultural Vehicle'. My brother's 21st birthday present was a 1970 MM Traveller in Old English White with a red coachline - she was 'Sybil'. We were a family of three Minors for some time! All are now gone - but Horti lives on, because he was sold to a young chap for restoration. 😊
Why did a young chap need restoring?
So many DO, Terry. Sadly it's a sign of the times... 🤣 These youngsters, honestly!
🤣 chortle!
😉
Sixth decade - it's but a road bump. You might find time running just a bit faster, however. This was a fun post,
LOL - so kind of you to say, Dale! It's funny - the more those numbers rack up, the less I seem to mind! An unforeseen bonus of ageing! 🤣
A new orbit! How fortunate! Wishing you so much joy. The 50s are an amazing time. Many women I've known really come into their own in that decade.
I can't tell you how often I've puzzled at the way we calculate age in the Western world. But, even more perplexing, in my opinion, is that we inadvertently follow the same calculation rule for other sorts of things. For instance, in 1998 I helped launch our local farmers market. When it came time to recognize our 25th year, there was a lot of deliberation. Some felt it should wait until 2023, but others, like me, agreed that the proper year was 2022. Otherwise, it would be as though we totally discounted our first season.
I don't need a website to identify my date of conception; my mother spilled those beans many years ago when I admired a photo of her at a Halloween costume party. She winked at my dad and said, "You know what happened that night..." 😳😊🤣
Thank you so much, Elizabeth!
I had a bit of a 🤯 when I was thinking about the numbers! It's difficult, isn't it? I mean, we all start life in our first year, but we're not one until the end, and of course you were absolutely right to count 2022 as the 25th anniversary of the market which had started in 1998 - because the market didn't turn one until it had been running for a whole twelve months! I'm still in my forties, yet I'm in my fiftieth year... and next year I start my sixth decade - it's like three big heavy chunks of time raining down on me all at once! 🤣
I LOVE your Halloween story! That's so funny! 🎃
Happy birthday!!! And what a fun newsletter!!!! Thanks for sharing it!!!
Thank you so much, Sue! 🥳
🎉🎉🎉🎂🎉🎂🎉🎉🎉
🤣
Happy b-day! I’m not brave enough to try the calculator… 🤣
LOL - and thank you, Jacquie! It's a bold move to take....! 😉🤣