I never anticipated wearing a hat with a piece of plastic birthday cake attached to it. It was a high school newspaper staff tradition, however, that anyone having a birthday was expected to wear the hat. So, on this day 30 years ago, I put it on. The newspaper was having a late night, during which all staff members were expected to make any requested last-minute edits and paste up the paper before it went to press. About five hours after I'd put the hat on, another staff member said, "Andrew's a good sport. He's still wearing the hat."
And, so I was. Although I wouldn't seek out a hat like that today, it's nice, once a year, to celebrate one's birthday. Wearing a birthday cake hat wouldn't have been my first choice for recognizing the occasion. Nevertheless, it was a fun albeit unconventional way of telling the birthday celebrant, "We're glad you're part of our lives." That's the essence of a considerate birthday celebration.
