It's my birthday today. By rights, the candles on the cake should spell out "O-L-D." (Actually the cake was discreet and delicious, my birthday celebration as lovely as anyone could ask, at my brother and sister-in-law's, surrounded by loved ones—including dear Mom, in from Massachusetts, which was a treat.) Time is a cheat, though, for sure. Not only does it keep up its inexorable march, year upon year, when you just wish it would hold off and take a break from time to time, but it actually seems to accelerate, as each year becomes incrementally a smaller percentage of a life.
Maybe buy yourself a present today, to help support my little website? Okay, that's this month's mention.
Mike
Help support T.O.P.!
Happy birthday, you wise, full of common sense & humour-photography writer!
Posted by: Cateto/Jose | Wednesday, 25 February 2009 at 05:45 AM
Happy birthday Mike!! You sure do deserve to have a good time, as every good man does.
I had my bad times and I made up one quote, "The good and the bad thing about time is it always passes". The good and the bad times, they all do. It's just natural. But they make us what we are, and we make reality what it is through them, so just enjoy the present, and time will take care of itself.
Posted by: Max | Wednesday, 25 February 2009 at 06:03 AM
Happy Birthday, Mike :).
Posted by: expiring_frog | Wednesday, 25 February 2009 at 06:04 AM
Congratulations and best wishes of good luck and endless creativity for your birthday! Thanks for keeping this incredible blog — been reading it for more than a year, it's a great source of info and inspiration for me.
Posted by: Prosto photos | Wednesday, 25 February 2009 at 06:19 AM
I can see the melancholy in your post. I won't say not to worry, but all of us kinda feel that way. Still, happy birthday!
Posted by: erlik | Wednesday, 25 February 2009 at 07:04 AM
Congratulations, Mike! You have now accumulated one more year of wisdom, patience and what the French call "knowing what to do". Please give yourself some hearty thumps on the back from me :-)
Posted by: Miserere | Wednesday, 25 February 2009 at 07:09 AM
Happy Birthday and watch out for the goat!!
Posted by: fjf | Wednesday, 25 February 2009 at 07:56 AM
Happy Birthday Mike!
Thank you for all your efforts, which have been a big influence on my photographic endeavors.
Posted by: Paul | Wednesday, 25 February 2009 at 08:09 AM
"None are so old as those who have outlived enthusiasm."
Henry David Thoreau
You obviously still have enthusiasm for what you do, so kick back and ENJOY your birthday!
Posted by: John Roberts | Wednesday, 25 February 2009 at 08:44 AM
It's my birthday too! I'll pluck some low-hanging fruit off my wishlist using the above Amazon link, for the both of us.
Cheers,
Rob
Posted by: Rob Strong | Wednesday, 25 February 2009 at 09:07 AM
Happy birthday!
I've certainly been noticing the accelerating flow of time myself. I had a conference last night with a friend I'm shooting a wedding for this summer. I've known her all her life, and I realized that the time when she was born is still fairly close to "now" in my head. And I feel like I haven't made that good use of my time.
Posted by: David Dyer-Bennet | Wednesday, 25 February 2009 at 09:08 AM
happy birthday!
Posted by: grigoris | Wednesday, 25 February 2009 at 09:21 AM
Very happy birthday dear Mike,
I will wish you a selfish wish - I want you to keep doing what you are doing and just continue your wonderful work on this site.
All the best to you and your family
Truly your
Bojan
Posted by: Bojan | Wednesday, 25 February 2009 at 10:46 AM
Yes, happy birthday Mike!
Posted by: Jayson Merryfield | Wednesday, 25 February 2009 at 10:47 AM
Happy Birthday Mike! Thanks for another year of the best photo-related website on the world wide web.
I promise I will buy a book through the Amazon Canada link soon.
Posted by: photogdave | Wednesday, 25 February 2009 at 11:27 AM
Happy birthday from Spain, Mike!
Posted by: Oronet Commander | Wednesday, 25 February 2009 at 11:29 AM
Happy Birthday! Wishing you good health, deepening and positive relationships, and...oh, yeah...continued stellar success with the blog! Maybe this year you will snag a corner office at T.O.P. World Headquarters...?
Posted by: Stephen Gillette | Wednesday, 25 February 2009 at 11:47 AM
Happy Birthday Mike and thanks for a superb photographic blog!
Posted by: Frank Brault | Wednesday, 25 February 2009 at 11:55 AM
Happy birthday, Mike, and may this year be a great one for you, full of friends, family and fine pictures.
Posted by: Ben Rosengart | Wednesday, 25 February 2009 at 12:09 PM
You're only as old as you act.
Cheers Mike
Posted by: charlie d | Wednesday, 25 February 2009 at 12:59 PM
Well, my first post to say Happy Birthday, keep fighting the good fight and the blog going.
I'm taking your advice and going for deep dive to amazon, cheers!
Posted by: Kev | Wednesday, 25 February 2009 at 01:18 PM
Happy belated. Or early Happy for next year. Your choice.
Posted by: Bruce Appelbaum | Wednesday, 25 February 2009 at 03:01 PM
Happy birthday to you - 4 minutes to midnight local time, so it's still not too late. I wish you a healthy new year of your life, for all what it's worth.
Posted by: Markus Spring | Wednesday, 25 February 2009 at 04:59 PM
Many happy returns! I am too tired to commit an act of consumption just now, but tomorrow, restored, I will follow that link and buy myself something sinful. Something SO sinful that you will think it's your birthday.
Posted by: Michael | Wednesday, 25 February 2009 at 05:55 PM
Oh, Just say you're 49,the new 39, and be done with it.
Happy Birthday
Posted by: Bron | Wednesday, 25 February 2009 at 07:25 PM
Happy Birthday!
Now go up to Kopp's!
Posted by: Dick Glaser | Wednesday, 25 February 2009 at 08:48 PM
Happy birthday and many happy returns to you Mike. May health and wealth keep you company for a long, long time...
Posted by: Mani Sitaraman | Wednesday, 25 February 2009 at 08:59 PM
Happy birthday Mike!
Posted by: ggl | Thursday, 26 February 2009 at 02:46 AM
Happy Birthday, Mike,
Mine's in two days. I'm getting my card our Amazoning right now. All the best
Derby
Posted by: Derby | Thursday, 26 February 2009 at 03:17 AM
Maligayang Kaarawan Mike!
Posted by: CP | Thursday, 26 February 2009 at 08:54 AM
Happy Birthday Mike!
My own birthday was on the 24th. I turned 39 and celebrated at Disneyland, snapping away with my Canonet 28. Good times.
Posted by: Marty McAuliff | Thursday, 26 February 2009 at 10:01 AM
Happy Birthday - and thanks for the wonderful blog!
*goes off to hit the tip jar*
Posted by: Rana | Thursday, 26 February 2009 at 10:34 AM
Happy (belated, had to catch up on a few days) birthday Mike!
I have a question about your affiliate program. Say I click through to Amazon but only end up putting a book into my shopping cart without checking out. When I check out at some other date say two weeks from when I first added the book, do I have to click through using your affiliate link again?
Posted by: Jeremy Tan | Saturday, 28 February 2009 at 06:41 PM
Jeremy,
Thank you, and yes you do. Everything you buy when you go to Amazon from my link will be credited to us, but you have to go there from TOP on the occasion that you actually make the purchase for it to count.
Thanks for asking....
Mike
Posted by: Mike Johnston | Saturday, 28 February 2009 at 07:16 PM
A belated Happy Birthday, Mike! Must be special to have one's birthday toasted by thousands of fans around the world. I look forward to buying myself a Mike's Birthday present soon.
Posted by: robert e | Tuesday, 03 March 2009 at 08:28 PM
A very belated "Joyeux anniversaire" to you! A friend mentioned your site and said I should stroll over and boy I'm glad I did.
Now nothing would please me more than buying from any of the retailers above if only they delivered to Switzerland. Which they don't. Bah humbug, &c.
No matter: joyeux anniversaire and all the best!
Posted by: Ludovic | Friday, 06 March 2009 at 03:32 AM