Celebrating Excellence - A Memorable Birthday Burger

People who know me know that I'm not big on birthdays, especially my own. No party. No cake. No candles. At some point in my life I realized that celebrating my existence is something I should do every day, not just once a year. So that's what I try to do.

In that same spirit, I sometimes say, "If you want to give me a present, please don't wait until my birthday to give it to me." Taking my own advice, I did buy myself something for my birthday - a new sound system for my TV. But I gave it to myself five months before my actual birthday, thereby adding an extra 150 days to my total enjoyment of it.

However, my wife, Kathleen, loves to celebrate birthdays, and she said she wanted to take me out to eat to celebrate. Without hesitation, I suggested we go to the Alamo Springs Cafe for a burger. The cafe is 75 miles west of here, but their burger is ranked #3 in the state of Texas by Texas Monthly magazine. I tried it once before, and it's worth the trip.

Texans know beef, and burgers are a big deal here. And I think it's  good to celebrate excellence, wherever you find it. I've also sampled the burger featured by The Roundhouse in Bastrop, 75 east of here. This one was ranked #38. Eating it was an awesome experience, but believe me, the Alamo Springs Cafe's burger is actually better.

Yes, I do have a thing about burgers, but they aren't a part of my regular diet. Kathleen says, "Eating burgers will kill you." I say, "Moderation in all things."

After lunch, we drove 14 miles to Fredericksburg, and while Kathleen visited the art galleries there, I parked myself at the bar in the Crossroads Saloon, where I drank one of the local beers while I watched my favorite basketball team, the Duke Blue Devils, blow out the competition.

My kind of birthday, one I won't soon forget.

Post by Dennis E. Coates, Ph.D., Copyright 2013. Building Personal Strength .