When I was nearing my 29th birthday I couldn’t cope – I was only a year away from 30! I was a new mum (my son was 18 months old), working two days a week and forgetting who I was.

Turning 35 was even harder, I felt old… but what I really was – uninspired, in a rut, stay at home mum to 2 gorgeous children, in a groundhog day part-time job.

Don’t get me wrong, now on the eve of turning 40 I can look back at the past decade, in particular, with a sense of clarity.

I love my family. I have a wonderful, supportive husband who most of the time thinks I walk on water. My children: a boy 12 and a girl 9, are wonderful people – I’m sure partly because I did spend so much quality time with them when they were younger. I know how lucky I am to have my children- I have seen my sister struggle through IVF for the past few years and know how difficult it is for her and how much it breaks her heart and spirit every time it doesn’t work. It makes me realise my children are gifts to cherish (even though I am currently enjoying a child-free afternoon, very important – this will become clearer soon), respect, guide and love.

So why do I look back at the past decade fondly? I found me, the real me. I found out what I wanted to be when I grew up.

I had a good enough job in a company who had been really flexible whilst I raised my children. Part of my job was fulfilling, with responsibility and flexibility. Part of it was as a shit-kicker. The pay was shocking. I took a long hard look at myself one day and decided I didn’t want to reach 40 and be doing a job that just paid the bills, doing something a 17 year old could do. So, I decided to do something about it.

I went back to university.

I had always wanted to be a teacher. I had taught clarinet and saxophone after finishing my music degree, and I studied to be a yoga teacher. So, I went back to uni and did my Graduate Diploma in Primary School.

Uni was different his time around. First time it was a chore, what you did after finishing high school. This time around, I loved it. I ate it up – the study, making new friends, feeling like myself again.

Finding what I was passionate about – teaching children.

Applying for jobs was intense. I ended up snapping up a job in a school I love, and spent my first year, as a 38-39 year old, learning something new every day.

No longer am I reliving groundhog day.

I am making a difference, I am organised, I am working full time with the support of my terrific family. I feel blessed.

So, as I knock on the door of 40, I know who I am. I know I am loved. I know who and what is important to me in this life. I know who I can count on. I know what I want to be when I grow up. In fact, I am grown up. Hip, hip, hooray!

While today is not my birthday, I thought that I’d hear from someone. My birthday is on a Monday and I know no one will want to do anything then. My wife thought about having a party, but I guess that’s not going to happen either. My 40th birthday eve is lonely indeed.

And where am I at 40? When i was 30, I was in the local newspaper listed as a “mover and shaker”. Young. Thirty was young. Now I’m at the age where I see people younger than me in leadership positions, while I stay where I am. I haven’t written my novel yet. I haven’t published much writing. I haven’t surpassed my dreams.

My children are 14 and 18. My 2nd wife is 36. My life is relatively stable and complete, but I can’t help feeling like I missed something. I know that we’re not supposed to have regrets, but I continually focus on what could have been… how things might have gone. I know it’s not right, but can anyone help it?

Forty. Just another birthday, right?

I have my true love by my side and have had him there for the last 20 years. I have the neatest 4 year old in the world, who turned our life upside down in the best possible way. I have amazing friends, who really understand me, and threw me the perfect low key, but truly special party last night. I also have a true understanding and acceptance of who I am, and with this knowledge, I have a peace that wasn’t even possible in my teens, 20’s or 30’s. In short, I have love in abundance. So instead of feeling remotely bad about being 40, I feel grateful that I have such a wonderful life and happy to see what the future holds.

By Karen A. Chase

Author of Bonjour 40: A Paris travel log

(40 years. 40 days. 40 seconds)

Why is it that turning 40 is supposed to be a bad thing? I know a lot of women curl up in the fetal position over it, but for me, it was a chance to do something I’d always longed to do. Live in Paris. For a month. I’ve made choices throughout my life that made this moment possible, but what made it feasible was simply that I planned to do it. When I turned 39, I said I’d go to Paris for my fortieth, and so I spent the year preparing to accomplish just that.

I took French lessons, and studied French DVDs. I found an apartment, put together a budget, and saved for it. Every time I thought about buying a blouse, or a new pair of shoes, I thought, “that’s a day in Paris.” Or, “Why would I buy American shoes when I’m going to Paris.” When tax time rolled around I said no to investing in my IRA (Because the market stinks anyway), and invested in my L-I-F-E instead.

Cry? Moan? Whine? About turning 40? Why on earth would I do that? The other option to smile, embrace it and take a trip of a lifetime is so much more rewarding. The side benefit has been it’s helped launch a career I’ve wanted for a long time. To write. My blog, photos and trip turned into a full-fledged book. Goodbye 39. Bonjour 40! Now, I can’t wait until 50 comes along!

I did have a revelation though. I put too much focus on other people making me happy. From this day forward, I will put my trust in the Lord and not in people. After all, God is the only on in my life that has never broken His promise that He will never leave me. So, tomorrow I will reflect on the forty years that God has blessed me with, and share my day with Him.

Our pastor usually points out the significance of any numbers used in the Bible passage we are studying. God is a God of order and purpose and has significance in all that He does, even the numbers. I thought I’d look up 40 to see what meaning it has in the Bible. After reading several websites (with a grain of salt of course), the consensus seems to be that forty is the number that symbolizes a trial. It’s a number used a lot in both Old and New Testament–it rained forty days during the flood, Moses was 40 years in Egypt, 40 in Midian, and led the people in the wilderness for 40 years as well. He was on the mountain receiving the Law from God (twice).  There are forty years of “probation” under trials, under enlarged dominion (David and Solomon), under prosperity (Gideon), under humiliation (under Saul and the Philistines). Jesus was tempted for forty days and seen by his disciples for forty days after his resurrection. Lots of 40′s.

SO what does this mean? Ummm…I don’t really know. Perhaps the first 40 years were probation or testing to get me ready for the next 40? Maybe. I’m sure it doesn’t mean the testing is over:). It’s certainly been a busy 40 years. I became a believer in Jesus, graduated high school and college, got married, had four kids. Walked with my husband through the trials of infertility, miscarriage, job loss.

I’ve become more comfortable in my own skin, yet less comfortable living here in this world. I have many more imperfections than I ever thought I did when I was a teenager–nothing brings those out more than having children and the Holy Spirit with a sense of humor  . I am much more aware of how little I know about anything and everything in this world. I do not have a picture perfect life–I can be grumpy, I’m rather opinionated, I struggle daily with some sort of messiness/clutter issue and I’d rather read a book or bake bread than exercise.

But I do know one thing: Jesus walks with me every step of the way. There is evidence of Him in every facet of my life and I know He will never leave me or forsake me. I know I am a vapor, and a rather messy one at that–and He loves me anyway.

My pumpkin scones are in the freezer, ready for my husband and children to bake for me in the morning. I’m anticipating many homemade cards from my sweet ones and interesting gifts from The Dollar Tree, picked out in love; breakfast in bed after a very long wait while it is prepared with lots of “shushing” and arguments and giggles (and prayers by me that is actually makes it to the bed without ending up on the hall floor). I’m looking forward to turning forty and any blessings the Lord would pour out, should He choose. I’m thankful for the first forty years I’ve had and can’t wait to see what He has planned for the next.

The thought of turning forty didn’t make me feel old until I realized that my life had a lengthy timeline of recorded music.

Via Dillard 57: This year was a big birthday, a life turning point. Moreover, I’m not the type of person who keeps her age a secret. I don’t care if people know my age, and I don’t feel shame about my age. I think getting older is ok. So turning 40 was not a secret, nor was it a birthday I particularly felt I needed to celebrate in a big way. I told family and friends that I have gotten so much love and support and generosity with my wedding and the birth of the Peanut, that I did not need any more parties or presents. I celebrated with Mr. Right on the day, and then the next day both me and the Peanut were sick so we laid pretty low. Whoopee! We are Party People.

Being the overly introspective type, nonetheless, this landmark birthday does give me pause.What does it mean to turn 40? What does it mean to move into this new decade? I didn’t want to let this one go by without a good ponder. And my dear friend Tina feels like I am some sort of trailblazer as I am a year older than her to the week, and one year older as a momma. She called me last night to remind me that I had not yet shared my musings. I was so honored that she even wanted to hear them that I am trying to oblige her now.

I asked a few of my personal trailblazers: how was or is the 40^th decade? And what was your favorite decade? I received the expected mix of answers, but almost all of them asserted that the 40s are a good decade, a year of coming into to your power as a woman, especially. I like that.By 40, you finally feel confident enough of yourself to be yourself. And to like yourself. And to know what you need and when you need it and then go and get it. I like all of this. I can see why it would be true.

I am a little sorry to leave my 30s behind though. The first 5 years of 30 were pretty good. I had an extremely fulfilling run as “Urban Artistic Single Woman” who was all hip and had all kinds of adventures and had freedom and a large community of friends and activities.. I miss my very sweet apartment, the 3^rd floor of a triple decker in Somerville, filled with sunshine and my artwork and my cat and my books. My time was my own – a concept I suppose you never appreciate until it’s gone. Then I met Mr. Right and oh my goodness, it has been a whirlwind ever since. I won’t bother tracking all the changes (most of which have been tracked in this blog), but let’s just say I’ve gone from “Urban Artistic Single Woman” to “Suburban Exhausted Working Mom Who Can Barely See Straight.” In some ways, all my childhood dreams have come true. And in some ways, the transition has been one of the two toughest times of my life. My world is definitely much smaller and much more chaotic. I also think becoming a new mom later in life has its advantages (maturity, gratitude, stability, lots of friends with help and advice) and some disadvantages (less stamina is a big one). So my age does have an impact on my parenting.

I’ve always envisioned my 45 year old self as this wise person who looks back in time at me and smiles, both a little ruefully at all the flailing about I do, but also with encouragement. That it will turn out OK, that I’m doing fine, that it will be fine in 10 years … now 5 years. She looks calm and has found the place where I need to be. So now I’m that much closer to finding her, even if I feel like I’m a bit frayed around the edges these days. So yes, 40 is just fine with me.

This experience is going to take both time and money. By blocking 3 weeks on our calenders (on google / iCloud – our existing computers / smartphones will be obsolete by then), 7 years in advance, we wont have any excuses to spare 3 weeks. In terms of money, we’re all setting up SIPs and putting away $100 a month from now – a number small enough that it wont pinch but enough to add-up to something significant given the mathematical effect of compounding. In short, we wont have any reasonable excuses to pull out of the trip when the time comes. Places that may feature on the list are Tierra del Fuego, the Galapagos Islands, Mongolia and Beirut.

When I look back at my life, a few key key moments that come to mind – my first trip to London en-route to College, my week at a youth hostel in southern Spain, re-living ‘Lost in Translation’ in Tokyo, a polo lesson in Buenos Aires, counting Zebras in Kenya. With work-related pressures and a second child on the way, it seems like life is going by way too quickly and there is little time for gathering more of those stellar memories that frequently punctuated the earlier years of my life. The idea is, I guess, to go into our forties with a 3 weeks of mad memories. Look out for the photos in 7 years…

If you read in a book or a story that a character is middle-aged, don’t you just see the slump in his shoulders, the frown on her face?  The baggy clothes and general air of despair at the middleness of it all?  No one wants to admit to being middle-aged, and I don’t blame us—the way our culture sees it, you might as well be saying you’re old.  And the way we see “old” in our culture?  Don’t even get me started.  Because I’m not gonna want to be old when I’m old.  Oh, I’m not planning to wear short shorts at eighty.  But I refuse to have slumpy shoulders and baggy clothes and an air of despair, even when I’m old.  I’m sure as hell not going to have those things today.

Today, you see, this subject matters to me quite a bit.  Because today I am turning forty.  Not twenty-nine for the eleventh year in a row, but really and truly, right in the thick of the plot, staring at the middle of the Oreo forty.

For the past couple of years and in a variety of situations, I’ve made the following statement flirtatiously, earnestly, comfortingly, defensively.  Now I’ll make it plainly:  forty is not old.

In an effort to revamp the concept of middle age, someone came up with the sporty slogan that forty is the new twenty.  Meaning, I suppose, that forty has energy and verve.  Forty has get up and go and then get it done.  Forty might have bunions and back pain, but she’s got it goin on—she can shake it ’till the break of dawn.

Is that what he or she meant, this inventor of the sporty slogan?

I doubt it.  He or she was probably trying to sell something—the idea of eternal youth, of constant reinvention, of never needing to admit that the middle is not the beginning.  I’m not buying (or selling) that idea, not for a minute.  I’ve worked too hard for my bunions and back pain to pretend they don’t exist.

When I was twenty, or twenty-five, or thirty, and I’d reach a limit with something—my frustrations with my own limitations or the brokenness of the world or the ways in which people can hurt and disappoint one another (meaning, of course, the ways in which I had been hurt and disappointed)—my mother would say, “Wait ‘till you turn forty.”  I didn’t know what she meant by that, exactly, but she seemed to be implying that my frustration would reach a breaking point, or that I would somehow be freer, or that I would understand things better.

Now that I am forty, I think she meant all of that, and more.

Forty is the age at which, if you haven’t already done so, you get over the b.s. of it all—your own and everyone else’s.  In fact, you get over the idea that everyone and everything is supposed to be free of b.s.   You begin to accept the imperfections in yourself, others, and the world at large.

What a beautiful thing.

It is only by accepting imperfection that we can begin to improve upon it, however imperfectly.

I’m not saying that you get perfect at this—the acceptance of imperfection.  Far from it.  But you do find a way to be okay with the fact that you are not perfect at anything at all—in fact, no one you know or have ever known is.  And you know what?  Sometimes that fact is downright endearing, whether you’re dealing with yourself or a loved one or the state of the nation.  At forty, the vulnerable flesh of the world’s mistakes seems less incomprehensible and more palpable.

This, I believe, is because by the age of forty, a person has had enough experience to be able to define both joy and pain through physical and emotional memory.  Sometimes there are scars—physical ones—that you can point to and say, “This is from that time in my twenties…” and then you either tell the story or you don’t, depending on your audience.

Sometimes the scars are deeper, and invisible.  By forty, there have been things that you don’t know how to accept, and you’ve accepted them anyway.  There have been things that you don’t know how to overcome, and you’ve overcome them anyway.  That is the nature of life, and of the human spirit.  Stick around long enough—get to the middle—and you’ll find that you know more than you thought you did.  Also, you know far less than you thought you did.  You live in the middle of the contradictions, every day as you go about the tasks of living, and you carry this awareness with you in your bones, your muscles, your tear ducts, your lungs.  Things are not perfect—things will try to break you.  So far, they haven’t.  That’s more than a good thing—that’s a reason to celebrate.  That’s joy right there—being here, today.

Here.  Today.

By forty, you can measure things in hunks of years—it will take me five years to come to terms with this, you can think.  Or you might think of your children and realize that you only have a decade before they’re grown.  It is impossible to say only a decade when you are twenty.

These measurements—the increments of joy and pain, played out upon our skin and our hearts—these are the marks of age and experience.   They will claim you sometimes, and you will claim them sometimes.

I’ll admit, there are things about forty—about aging—that aren’t my favorite.  The bunions and the backaches are no day at the park.  And it will be quite some time before I’m ready for my hair to be all silver gray and dignified, no matter what my hair has to say on the matter.  (Though I will keep my wrinkles, every one of them, as they appear.)  There are days—sometimes many of them in a row, so many they add up to weeks—when the palpable quality of the world’s mistakes, and my own, becomes too familiar, too constant.  There are days when I wish for the just-washed, baby blue faith of a morning in my twenties.

I might say it plainly or with resignation or ten other ways on ten different days, but I’m bound to say it now and then:  forty isn’t young.

So today, I want to give myself—and anyone else who’s turning forty, about to turn forty, recently turned forty, will someday turn forty, or turned forty a while ago and is now contemplating a new milestone—the gift of redefining the middle as not the beginning, not almost the end, but the bona fide, honest to goodness, smack in the middle middle.  In fact, I’d be happy if we could redefine chronological age as a number and not a state of being.

Sometime between today and the day I let my hair go silver gray, I plan to master yoga.  This is because the yogis say that the secret to youth is a flexible spine.  They believe that a well-cared for body and soul holds chronological age more fluidly than a body that is not stretched, exercised, rested, and connected to peace.  And I think they’re right.

As I journey toward an age that is no longer in the middle, I intend to seek a state of being that not only accepts age, but celebrates it.   As long as age doesn’t have to include slumpy shoulders, an air of despair, and throwing out half a perfectly good cookie, I’m on board.

Who’s with me?

I don’t have health insurance, so I have a big investment in staying healthy.

And so I did a little research today — I found the top causes of death, then created a spreadsheet for the controllable risk factors for each.

Some things can’t be controlled (your age, family history of diseases, gender). But others can. And those things aren’t a huge surprise — you already know not to smoke, drink too much, or eat crappily.

It’s interesting, though, how all of the major diseases are caused by the same things: smoking, diet, exercise, alcohol and stress.

Below I’ll list the top habits you can change, and a simple method for changing them.

The 8 Habits of Healthy Living

1. Stop smoking. This is by far the most important habit, as it affects almost every single one of the leading causes of death. It’s also the hardest of these habits to change. It’s not at all impossible — I quit six years ago next month (read my tips).

2. Lose weight (if you’re overweight). This is not exactly a habit — the best habit to form to lose weight is to eat less. Or eat more of things that don’t have a lot of calories, like fruits and veggies. Being overweight is just below smoking the worst risk factor for many diseases.

3. Exercise. You don’t need me to tell you to exercise, but listen to this: lack of exercise is a major risk factor for heart disease, stroke, colon & rectal cancers, diabetes, breast cancer, high blood pressure and high cholesterol. If you don’t exercise, you’re just asking to get a major disease. It’s almost a magic pill: do a bit of exercise every day, and you get healthy. You don’t need much — start with 5 minutes a day in the morning.

4. Drink only in moderation. Heavy drinking is one of the worst risk factors for many diseases. That’s more than 2 drinks of alcohol a day for men, and more than 1 drink for women. A glass of red wine is a good thing, but too many and you’re greatly increasing your risk of disease.

5. Cut out red & processed meats. Eating red meats, and processed meats like sausages, bacon, canned meats and so on, is a risk factor for colon/rectal cancer, stomach cancer, and high cholesterol, which in turn is a leading risk factor for coronary heart disease and stroke. While this won’t sit well with many people, the overwhelming mass of research supports this. I recommend going vegetarian.

6. Eat fruits & veggies. This is obvious, but it’s amazing how few veggies most people eat. Eating fruits and veggies reduces your risk of several leading diseases, and it’s one of the easiest habits to form. Eat a salad (without heavy dressings, bacon or other meats, croutons or cheese), add veggies to soups or veggie chili, cook up veggies as a healthy side dish with dinner or lunch. Eat fruits with breakfast and as snacks.

7. Reduce salt, and saturated/trans fats. Salt and saturated or trans fats are in so many processed or prepared foods, and they increase risks of high blood pressure and high cholesterol, which increase risk for heart disease and stroke. Despite what the Weston Price Foundation and other people on the Internet tell you, saturated fat isn’t healthy — read the sources. Note that this isn’t a controversy in the medical community, but the “harmlessness” of saturated fats is perpetuated by the diary and meat industries, and lay writers like Gary Taube. Cook your own healthy meals instead of eating out or eating prepared foods.

8. Reduce stress. Stress is a risk factor for heart disease and high blood pressure, which is itself a risk factor for stroke. Simplify your workday so that you’re not overly stressed, and exercise to relieve stress.

How to Form the Habits

This might seem like a lot to change, if you’re not already doing these things, but let me share something with you: I changed all of these in the last 6 years.

In 2005, I was incredibly unhealthy. Then I learned to change my habits, and slowly I:

• Quit smoking.
• Started running.
• Became vegan.
• Lost 70 lbs.
• Cleaned up my diet and got rid of unhealthy stuff.
• Simplified my life and reduced stress.
• Cut drinking down to 1-2 glasses of red wine a day.

I did it, and so can you. I changed one habit at a time, slowly, in tiny tiny steps, and it wasn’t hard. Don’t try to change everything, and don’t make it hard on yourself. It’s actually very easy if you’re patience and if you just start.

Here’s how to change these habits:

• Change only one habit at a time. It doesn’t matter which habit you choose. Just choose one. You’ll want to do more than one, but don’t.
• Create positive habits you enjoy. Read the last word again — if you enjoy it, the habit change will be easy. Replace smoking with positive habits you enjoy that fulfill the needs that smoking now fulfills (stress reduction, social lubrication, boredom relief, etc.). Replace red meats with healthy foods you enjoy.
• Start as small as possible. Just do 5 minutes the first week, and try to be consistent as possible. Then do 10 minutes. Small change is by far the most effective method I’ve used for changing habits. Slow change lasts.
• Make it social. Find a partner or group to change the habit with you, so you’re more likely to stick with it.

These work. I’ve done them many times, and every time I stick to these principles, I’ve changed a habit.

Healthy living isn’t impossible, or even especially difficult. It’s just slower to come by than most people care for.

Giudice, who has four daughters with her husband Joe — Gia, 10, Gabriella, 7, Milania, 5, and Audriana, 2 — says that she simply doesn’t have time for negative energy in her life, including the gossip rumors about her and her Real Housewives cast mates. Instead she prefers to focus on her family and her career.

With so much going on for her right now, including juggling her career and taking time out to spend with her family, Giudice says she doesn’t even have the time to sleep. “I can sleep when my kids are gone and gown. For now, I’m up with them in the morning, I send them to school, I work out with Audriana at the gym, then I work, run errands, work some more, pick the kids up for school, make dinner help them with their homework. Joe and I get alone time once they’re in bed,” she said.

Giudice also says that she’s just now taking care of her body as her 40th birthday is just around the corner. “For the first time in my life, I joined a gym. I’m 40 this year and having kids finally caught up with me! That’s actually the theme of my third cookbook coming out next year. What’s worked for me is going to the gym first thing in the morning after my older girls go to school.”

It looks like Giudice is going to need that extra energy for the upcoming year. There’s a little birdie going around saying that she might be part of the next cast of The Celebrity Apprentice. With Guidice and possibly Victoria Gotti on the show, that would be a good show worth watching.

Photo courtesy The Brooks Group

Via Notorious Rob.com There was a time when I thought 40 was the end. I was probably 19 or so, drunk on the peculiar poetry of youth, philosophical in the way that only the semi-mature can be, and caught in the strange shadowlands between the unbounded world-is-your-oyster optimism and the soul-killing despair at the evils of the world.

40? Might as well be dead.

All young men, perhaps, wish to be Achilles: heroic, strong, beautiful, foolhardy, passionate, burning like a flame, and passing on in the flower of their youth. The smarter and luckier of us perhaps find our way to becoming Odysseus: canny, wise, old, and finding happiness in the simple joys of hearth and home.

So here I am at the magical age. The day doesn’t feel any different from any other day. The heavens did not open up with significant signs. The earth did not move, since I don’t live in California. Or Washington DC. But I can’t help but reflect on a few things, especially with literally dozens of people on Facebook wishing me a happy birthday. Consider this my heartfelt thanks to all of you.

Hunger, and Satisfaction

The strangest thing about reflecting on the 40 milestone is the sense of being satisfied and hungry at the same time.

I think of my 20′s as the Age of Hunger. I had just graduated. The whole world was open before me with limitless opportunities. I was a smart young man in the Big City. Not having come from wealth (actually, we lived in a whole other zip code from wealth, in parts of town the smart people program their GPS to avoid), all I knew in my 20′s was hunger, ambition, desire. To prove myself. To learn more. To achieve something, and then achieve the next thing. It’s the beautiful, bountiful, bodacious energy of youth.

I crossed the threshold into 30 and felt as if I had finally grown up. I have since been disabused of that notion, and have actively sought to go backwards as much as possible, but… the 30′s were a calm decade marked more by satisfaction at what I had achieved in my 20′s, what I had learned in that decade of life, and some of the accomplishments. I got married. I became a father. I found professional happiness at some wonderful companies, and had edifying experiences at one or two really crappy companies. It is as if a young colt found its legs, pranced around enough, and came to realize… “Oh, so this is how I run!”

At 40, however, a man realizes that somewhere between half to two-thirds of his life (depending on your lifestyle, healthy habits or lack thereof, and so on) is behind him. One can’t help but look backwards, at least briefly, as if over the shoulder at a shadow seen out of the corner of the eye. And the thinking man can’t help wonder, just what is it that I have accomplished with these four decades on this earth? And asking that question, I am caught up in the juxtaposition of satisfaction and a newfound ambition.

Ambition, hunger — these are rekindled because the accomplishments, no matter how great and interesting, are firmly in the past. To simply follow that path from the bygone days of memory to the present and into the road ahead is… fine. But there’s something unsettling about the idea. It’s as if I am surrendering to the idea that my best days are behind me: I’ve scratched and clawed and fought and climbed my way to this place, and I am ready to coast a while now. Maybe such a path is eminently sensible, but having spent my later 30′s learning that I really haven’t grown up all that much yet, I’m not ready to call it a Job Well Done. Not yet. No, like Dylan Thomas, I will rage against the dying of the light. Whatever it is that I have learned, whatever skills I have honed, whatever hard-earned wisdom I have gained (for each jot and tittle of which I have paid, and paid, and paid again)… I see as not accomplishments in and of themselves, but preparation for whatever it is that lies ahead. I find that I am hungry again.

But at the same time, sitting at dinner listening to my two little sons sing me happy birthday with total disregard for tune, tonality, and the laws of music… I can’t help but be satisfied. Running around on a typical busy Wednesday, but fielding calls with my agent, with the builder, with the mortgage people, all working on our new home, and knowing that we have built a certain amount of financial security… it is well nigh impossible for a poor immigrant kid from the ghetto not to feel blessed at the life I have. Throughout the day, being able to get on the phone with business associates and people I respect so much in our quirky, strange, twisted little industry, and know that they consider me a colleague… it is impossible not to feel a sense of satisfaction.

And most of all, getting phone calls and Facebook messages, and emails and tweets throughout the day (while I was out running around on a typically busy Wednesday), I can’t help but be satisfied at the people I’ve met over these four decades of journey, struggle, and accomplishment… I can’t help but be pleased at having friends both old and new, and friends I have not yet met. Some of the greatest human beings on the planet, I have met in the past few years… quite a few of them because of this blog and these too-long ramblings. I can’t even help but be pleased at the few enemies I have made along the way, for who they are, and what they are, define me as well.

So let me say this: all of you who are reading this right now, you honor me. With your attention, sometimes with your comments, rarely with your insults, and often with your friendship. You make life interesting, challenging, fun, and make the journey just a little bit easier. To the haters — you also honor me with your hate, for you are beneath contempt and the praise of low characters is worthless indeed.

So thank you all. Today, I am well satisfied with my blessed life. And yet, I hunger again. The spark is rekindled into an open flame.

Watch what happens from now. Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

I look forward to making that journey over the next decade with you all. I got nothing but love 4 you.

http://www.notorious-rob.com/

To celebrate the big day, the stunning Australian TV star and singer decided to treat fans to a peek at her favourite memories from the last 40 years, posting photographs on the website mydaily.co.uk.

Top of the list was the adorable photo of Dannii and her partner Kris Smith huddled round their newborn baby Ethan, as they took him home from hospital, which Dannii dubbed “the moment I’ll cherish forever”.

A snap of former X Factor judge Dannii covering outspoken Simon Cowell’s mouth with her hand – “the moment that always makes me laugh” – was another highlight, as was launching fashion label Project D with best friend Tabitha Webb, which Dannii refers to as “the moment I felt most empowered”.

She also had a picture of her former protégé Matt Cardle winning The X Factor, whom she mentored on the 2010 version of the show, calling it her proudest moment.

Most women try to shy away from the fact that they’re turning 40, but Dannii seemed delighted to reach the landmark age, thanking fans on Twitter for all their birthday messages.

Stars also flooded Twitter with celebratory messages for the star, including  Dannii’s pop princess sister Kylie, who posted: “LOVERS!!!!!! My little sister @DanniiMinogue is celebrating her 40th today. Send your hip, hip, hooray!!!!! Happy Birthday Dan!!!!!”

Matt Cardle himself also took to Twitter to wish his former X Factor mentor a very happy 40th, writing: “@DanniiMinogue HAPPY BIRTHDAY BABE !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! HAVE A WICKED DAY !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! XXXXXXXX”

But it’s just not true. Those toys, video game icons, and pop-culture references are from my youth, but the conscious years, not the zygote years.

Having said that, there ARE some cool things/people turning 40 this year, right along with me. John Lennon’s song Imagine. Clint Eastwood’s Dirty Harry. And my girl Mary J Blige hits the big 4-0 right alongside me this year.

In honor of facing 40 on Sunday, I decided to stroll down memory lane and celebrate 40 of my Greatest Hits (and a few Misses) of my life in progress, lived out loud…

1. At age 6, scoring a Barbie dream house (the one with the Pink elevator) for Christmas, one of many fave memories from a childhood filled with Barbie

2. At age 7, watching the movie Grease in the theater with my mom, and as the end credits rolled, hearing her say, “In real life, he’d change for her.”

3. Following my globetrotting parents around the world, living on three continents (North America, Australia, Asia) before I was 10

4. Begging my parents for a ventriloquist doll named Lester for Christmas, unwrapping him with glee, and insisting on entertaining my parents friends (and bosses!) with a comedy set that always started with, “OK, Joke Time!”

5. At age 12, mistaking a moat for a puddle during a Sri Lankan downpour (stepping in, plummeting, and resurfacing to the shock and awe of onlookers)

6. At 15, falling in love with Rebel, a creative, fun loving, new waver who had a girlfriend, told me he loved me more, and set the scene for a decade of me chasing emotionally unavailable men who didn’t love me back

7. After high school graduation, getting schooled on how to drink beer (and getting drunk for the first time) with Bad Influence, my high school buddy (His tip: Always drink a root beer first so your burps taste good)

8. Binge drinking root beer (and then some) for four years straight at college

9. At 22, falling in love and moving in with Trouble, a.k.a. a 37-year-old bodybuilder with a checkered past

10. At 23, barely escaping Trouble with my life

11. At 29, landing my dream job where I got to write about Barbie all day long

12. After a safe and predictable three-year relationship with Mr. Vanilla, loudly and proudly proclaiming while watching the movie The Tao of Steve, “I want to meet someone who’ll ROCK my world!”

13. Enter Mr. Rocky Road, a.k.a. the first man to make me feel seen, heard, loved, and adored (when we weren’t embroiled in a codependent nightmare, that is!)

14. Watching all my friends get married, have babies, and settle down, desperately wishing Mr. Rocky Road could get his act together and morph into The One

15. Breaking up, making up, & breaking down for six months straight during my Big Breakup with Mr. Rocky Road

16. Running off to Greece following my Big Breakup: Sunbathing topless for the first time, hiking a 17 km gorge with a gorgeous Air Force officer, and coming home alive, hell bent on proving to my dad I wasn’t foolish, crazy, or wrong for going alone

17. After 4 1/2 years, breaking up the Barbie, quitting my job, & not having a plan

18. Launching my first website BreakupChronicles.com one week after leaving my job

19. Renting out my condo, putting my stuff in storage, and escaping to the Montana wilderness for a month to “figure things out”

20. Scoring my first piece of press, a front-page feature in my hometown newspaper (Miss: Hiding all day when the paper hit stands, afraid to own it and celebrate it)

21. Coming back to LA, sleeping on a blowup mattress on my best friend’s living room floor, and feeling happy for the first time in a long time

22. Falling in love with myself, my life, and becoming a man magnet

23. Meeting my future husband at a bar, thinking he was 20-years-old and gay, bonding over a shared love of David Sedaris and Pink Martini

24. Recognizing on date #2 that my future husband could be The One (he’d just finished telling me, “I’m too nice for the naughty girls and too naughty for the nice ones.” Disco!

25. Telling my future husband on that same second date that I never wanted to get married or have babies

26. Getting my first book deal

27. Becoming a best-selling author (Miss: Coming home from my book tour and realizing I was a broke best-selling author)

28. Getting the call from my publicist that the Today Show wanted me on to talk about my first book IF: I came to New York the following week and shot B roll of one woman getting a post-breakup makeover and another woman having a Movin’ On party. The catch: I had to set it all up (Not having been in New York since college and not knowing anyone in the city, I said yes, and within a week had everything I needed for 2 kick ass segments!)

29. Realizing I really can do anything I set my mind to (Priceless, Mastercard!)

30. After years of being an excessive Sex and the City fan, spending one hour chatting with Candace Bushnell about the REAL Mr. Big

31. Handing my future husband my grandmother’s wedding ring and saying, “Give it back when you’re ready.” (Miss: Getting mad that it took him another six months to propose!)

32. Three years ago, donning a red gown, walking down the aisle to Etta James’ “At Last”, & promising to love my husband forever (The EASIEST thing I’ll ever do)

33. Spending a month in Paris on our honeymoon, watching Obama get elected, and celebrating hope around the world

34. Inspiring my sister to believe in love for the first time in 10 years and find HER Mr. Right

35. Writing 4 more books while building a profitable consulting business I LOVE

36. Loving (and eventually losing) my first pet, my cat Maya

37. Crying when I found out that my beautiful, smart, 18-year-old sister-in-law was pregnant

38. Being my 19-year-old sister-in-law’s birth coach, eventually helping her through a C-section after 19 frustrating hours of labor, and being the first family member to hold my niece

39. Leaving the hospital, realizing for the first time that my niece wasn’t coming home with ME

40. Having made peace with my childhood, being compassionate for my 20 something wild child, and appreciating the wisdom and experience of my 30s, looking forward to my 40s with a mix of curiosity, possibility, and excitement

What about you? What are some of YOUR hits and misses from YOUR life in progress?

I’m here because my friends loved me and believed in me and sent me to a world class leadership program. I’m alone because I must be, and I’m getting a tree on my back because the tree is the symbol of my true life.

Beauty and pain are inextricably linked. Authenticity–what my new tattoo represents–is not possible without pain.

So, many years ago I set clear intentions for my life:  I want my insides to match my outsides. I want to be real. I want to live authentically. I knew at the time that this was not an easy task. I knew it would cost me things to live out those intentions. Mostly I knew that I would have to drastically change for those intentions to turn into reality.

Today–I turn 40.

I’m here to tell you that it is possible to live an authentic life. I’m finding authenticity growing in my own life. More and more what the world sees is really what is going on inside me.

Truth. My life has never been better. Ever.

I get to do what I love every day. I have the most amazing friends in the world. I get to be a dad to two smart, beautiful, accomplished, and kind children. I get to experience relationships with truth and intimacy.

But, like in the tattoo parlor, this beauty doesn’t come painlessly. In early June, my personal life came crashing apart. My biggest fear came true and my closest relationship came to an abrupt end. I was abandoned. I was devastated. I could barely breathe. I have never experienced such searing pain.

It was in these moments that my friends showed up. They have shown up emotionally. They have shown up physically from all over. They have shown up financially. I have been loved in the midst of my vulnerability.

What I have learned from these friends is that I am believed in. That I made a difference in their life and in my need they want to do the same for me. I have learned that I am valuable just as I am—just because I am Ken.

I enter my 40s in the best place I have ever been.

Join me in my celebration of authenticity. Discover for yourself what being real looks like. Enter into it. Experience it. Tell me what you discover.

On the upside, the party my husband is planning sounds like it’s going to be lots of fun! In an effort to keep me from having to do much, he hired a housekeeper and scheduled a spa appointment for me the day of the big event. Also, we’ve outsourced the food and libations – Taco Taxi, a mobile taco cart catering service (doesn’t that sound like fun??) is doing dinner, Margarita Adventures is providing a margarita machine, and Creative Sweet Shoppe will be baking and decorating a vanilla cake with raspberry filling. I can’t wait!!

Check back next week and I will follow up on the big shin-dig and let you know my thoughts on how it went. And how everything tasted! That is, if my aged old brain can remember all the details. I’ll be 40 by then so you never know.

Via Intentblog Written by Christine Arylo

What if fear no longer stopped you from your dreams?

What is it that you really want right now?

Not from your head or your ego, or what you think you should have to make you happy.

Go deeper.

To the place where real dreams, dreams worth having and dreams that actually have the power to manifest in reality come from.

Go in to your heart.

Who already knows exactly what dream is raising its hand screaming, “Ooh! Ooh! Pick me!!”

Who already knows the first few steps you could take right now to turn it from dream to reality.

What does your heart have to say?

Can you hear her or him?

Okay, let’s do this together.

Close your eyes right now.

Take a breath and put your hand on your heart and ask, “What is the one dream I have for myself that right now is most important to me?”

What does your heart say?

And if you were to ask “What is the one or two steps that I can take in the next three days to move towards that dream?”

What does your heart say?

And wait, one more question…

“What is the one thing that will stop me from this dream becoming real?” What does your heart say?

Okay, just one more…

“If I didn’t listen to fear but instead to the truth in my heart, what do I know?”

Whew! Great work moving past your fear into love… if you were really listening to your heart when you did this exercise, then when you asked yourself what would stop my dream from becoming real, you would have felt your heart contracting, fluttering or some kind of feeling that was BLAH! That’s because fear had the microphone!

And as an ambassador of Team Love, I’m just not going to let fear win over you and smash your dream. All you have to do is take the love dare!

SELF-LOVE DARE…

Take one giant step toward your dream!

1.Write down the guidance you received in your journal, on a piece of paper, heck even a sticky note. Just somewhere you can see it.

2.Then write down, say out loud or share with a friend the one or two actions you are going to take in the next 3 days to take a giant leap toward

If you need some extra support connecting to your Inner Wisdom and her Team Love message about your dreams – you can download the video meditation I created.

Wherever this finds you today, read this knowing that fear only has the power you provide it and at any time you have a choice … To choose to have faith in LOVE or to choose to have faith in FEAR. I really encourage you to try on having faith in LOVE. And of course, that love starts with the love you have for yourself. Love yourself well today. You deserve it.

PHOTO (cc): Flickr / Augustine Press

So here I am – today – turning 40. It doesn’t feel right because I just don’t picture myself as 40. In my mind I see myself somewhere in my late 20′s or 30′s. Maybe it’s because I don’t know what 40 feels like yet.

Honestly my 30′s were a mix of good and bad. I got married and divorced in my 30′s. I bought and sold a house in my 30′s. I found out I can’t have kids in my 30′s and realized that I can never ever live without a dog in my life. I worked at 5 companies. I became an aunt – twice. I witnessed the passing of all 4 of my grandparents and several other loved ones. I experienced a lot, lived a lot and learned a lot.

These are the top things I have learned in the past 40 years:

1. I never knew the power of a dog in my life until I got one; now I cannot imagine a life without one – ever.

2. I have come to realize that following my passion might be fun but it isn’t going to pay the bills. I am a realist.

3. My family is the best thing that has ever happened to me I will go down fighting for them in any circumstance.

4. Italian food wins, hands down, every time

5. The grass is not always greener but sometimes you have to visit it, and roll around in it for awhile to realize it.

6. Money does not solve all problems, but it can makes the ones you have easier.

7. I rent my apartment and I love it. I love it much more than the house I owned for 2.5 years.

8. I would rather have you hold my heart than hold my hand. I can take care of myself if I need to but I prefer to do it while you are loving me.

9. I don’t have room for unnecessary drama in my life any longer. With age comes wisdom about just how unnecessary drama is nothing more than draining.

10. I am an open person. I wear my heart on my sleeve and I will share a lot with you. If you betray my trust I will never share with you again.

11. I am crier. I cry when I am sad, nostalgic, angry, frustrated, and even sometimes when I am happy. Just pass the tissues I will be fine.

12. I don’t judge you, but if you judge me I WILL judge you right back. Sorry I am just not that big of a person.

13. Sometimes I eat cereal for dinner and grilled cheese sandwiches for breakfast. I haven’t died yet.

14. Cotton over silk, denim over linen, and fleece over cashmere all the time (well ok not fleece over cashmere ALL the time)

15. A good pair of black boots, a sweet pair of jeans and a black sweater can work every time.

16. Bon Jovi forever.

17. A quiet night in can be just as thrilling as a wild night out.

18. Food should be eaten to enjoy not just to sustain.

19. Sometimes being right is not as important as admitting when you are wrong.

20. I will probably never keep a blog for more than one year before I change URLs – so follow me if you want.

21. I love watching football in the fall – yes, a girl who enjoys a Sunday of wings, football, and being lazy in front of the games.

22. Halloween is probably my least favorite holiday followed by St. Patrick’s Day.

23. Thanksgiving and Christmas are my favorites.

24. Kissing someone new and amazing in the rain is one of the best feelings ever.

25. I keep saying I want to go skydiving and I do; but I keep chickening out.

26. I am completely and utterly open to any possibilities that come my way in the coming year.

I was hoping to come up with 14 more to make an even 40 – keep coming back I’ll come up with them eventually.

more from Michelle at www.viewfrom40.com

So 3 months into this being 40 thing and I am learning so much about becoming an “older” woman. Well, if I’m being honest, I have been privy to a lot of this for a while now, but it seems that somehow when you actually become 2 scores, everything is magnified by 10 like the ugly side of those vanity mirrors and no matter how hard you try, you can’t make it stop. So here are a few things that you discover once you start to crest the hill (which incidentally I will be doing for at least another 10 years).

1. Your body makes lots of new and strange noises. Now one could ask, “how is that any different than being a teenaged boy?” Well, I am happy to answer. You see, teenaged boys are usually making these sounds on purpose, either with their mouths, or other body parts. But a woman over 40? She is usually just as surprised as everyone else when a joint creeks or her behind suddenly learns how to play the trumpet. Most of the time, if you ask her what that sound was, she is just as clueless as you are.

2. You suddenly develop the ability to REALLY multi-task in some new and exciting ways, for instance, you can gain an obscene amount of fat/weight, while simultaneously being able to build massive muscle in a very short amount of time. I have completely stopped using weights when I workout because I don’t want to end up looking like a chubby linebacker.

3. Piggy backing off of number 2, you are secretly convinced that you are not going through the change, you are really turning into a man. You know this because you have more facial hair than your male significant other, you develop the appetite of a lumber jack, and you’re horny at sunrise like a teenaged boy with morning wood (I’m sensing an ongoing theme here).

4. And the final thing that you have to get used to is the fact that guys your age are suddenly no longer attracted but guys your son’s age want to benefit from your years of experience and are fascinated by your newly acquired natural double Ds that you hate because nothing with a waist or without fits right anymore. You, in essence have become a cougar, which you don’t mind so much because how else are you going to satisfy that morning urge? (That is of course if you are single).

Having said all this, I would never want to be in my 20s again. Especially considering that I was a very new, very high strung young wife, and smack dab in the middle of having and taking care of home and babies. Seriously, I would rather plank on hot coals than do go through that ordeal again…okay, maybe not.

Yes, it has finally happened. A few weeks ago, I left my glorious thirties to move on to bigger and better, and well, older things in life.

Just a decade ago, I was frantically planning my wedding and the thought of turning 40 someday wasn’t really on my radar. So now I sit pondering those deeper thoughts like, what do I want to accomplish in the next ten years? What do I want my children to accomplish in the next ten years? What will life look like at 50? And in spite of all that, the most pressing issue I face, honestly, is what on earth do I wear now that I’ve reached the big four-o?

I’ve never been a Fashionista, but do have a taste for the finer threads in life. Trends are something I rarely follow, unless I really feel drawn to them. I have a soft spot for Italian shoes and unique handbags, and am always on the look-out for a good bargain.

And since I became a Mama 6 1/2 years ago, what little fashion priority I had has dissipated into thin air. On many days, I could be the shining star of the show “What Not to Wear”. Though to my own credit, this is not based on a lack of fashion sense, but laziness, kids needs coming first, and downright practicality.

Now I have added the age issue to the Mama issue, and instead of death-by-fashion, I have decided to create a plan. A fashion-over-forty-for-me plan. Here are my priorities: classic over trend, bargain over breaking the bank, age appropriate and most of all mother-proof.  In other words, I’m thinking of opening a new clothing store that offers all of this and more:  ”Forever – Forty”.  Because I have no desire to look or dress like I am Forever Twenty – One.  It makes me squirm when I see women don the latest teen fashion as though they actually look good in it.  And even if by some twist of fate they have the body for it, it still just looks wrong to dress like someone that could be your daughter, or niece.  Maybe I’m just too old school, but I want to look good, feel good, and be dressed appropriately fun for my age at any given point in my future.

The only thing left is to convince my husband I need a clothing allowance to make this wardrobe wish come true.  Maybe I will bribe him with some his-and-hers shopping where we both get to buy new things for ourselves, not the kids like we usually do.  So wish me luck on my new fashion-venture, and if I ever really open the store, you’ll be the first to know.

It finally happened. I knew that it would and I couldn’t stop it. But I wasn’t ready. It had already happened to many of my closest friends, but that didn’t make me feel any better.

On the first of July this year, I turned 40 years old. Yes, the BIG 4-0. I started thinking about this birthday around Christmastime last year. I wasn’t dwelling on turning 40 but wrapping my mind around the fact seemed somewhat challenging.

When I shared this with some of my close friends and family, I usually got some variation of the same comment. Their responses were mostly encouraging and related to physical appearance and professional achievements relative to my age. But my mixed emotions about turning 40 were not due to concerns about my appearance or worry about my career.

I wasn’t concerned about whether other people thought that I looked good for 40 or if they felt that I should have accomplished more by this age. For me, 40 is the time to perform my next big self-examination. A time for me to take a step back, reflect on my life, create new goals, and update my plans for my walk through life.

Having goals is important to me so reflection and self-examination are key pieces in this process. I like to be organized and develop well-thought out plans for achieving my goals. Over time I have learned to be less rigid in my plans and to re-examine them often because life usually doesn’t conform to our plans.

So what’s the big deal about 40? Compared to age 30, today my cholesterol and BMI are lower, my salary is higher, I’ve paid off all my student loans from college and medical school, I spend more time with my family and friends, and my jump shot is better. Okay, it’s my perception that my jump shot is better but the other things are facts!

Although I feel great about my life, there are some very important things that will impact my life plans at age 40 compared to 30. By far, the biggest difference in my life today is that I’m a mother. My two children, Elise- 8 and Trey- 5, have significantly changed the way that I see life and my priorities. Because of them, I am also more aware of the importance of being a good role model; recognizing that ‘do as I say, not as I do’ is usually ineffective.

Another difference at age 40 is the focus on being healthy. Some of the most common chronic medical conditions such as high blood pressure, heart disease, and diabetes are more prevalent after age 40. So the efforts to be physically active, maintain a healthy weight and avoid tobacco that worked prior to age 40 is not enough. Screening for the early detection of some conditions like breast cancer should begin at age 40.

According the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, ALL women age 40 should:

• Get a Pap test at least every 3 years to screen for cervical cancer.
• Have a blood pressure check at least once every 2 years if it was previously normal. If the blood pressure has ever been elevated, more frequent monitoring is needed.
• Get a flu shot every year to protect yourself and others from the flu.
• Get enough folic acid because women of child-bearing age require an additional 400mcg of folic acid daily to prevent birth defects. This supplement is recommended for sexually active women until age 50. Many pregnancies after age 40 are not planned.
• Based on family history and other risk factors, SOME women age 40 should also:
• Discuss colon cancer screening with your doctor if someone in your family has had colorectal cancer.
• Get your cholesterol checked once every 5 years if you are at high risk for heart disease (if you smoke, have diabetes, high blood pressure, are overweight or have a family history of heart disease).
• Get screened for breast cancer. Talk with your doctor about when to start getting mammograms and how often you need them.
• Get tested for sexually transmitted diseases including HIV if you have unprotected sex.
• Talk with your doctor if breast or ovarian cancer runs in your family. Some women may benefit from additional screening or medications to prevent cancer.

To learn what prevention strategies you should be planning based on your age, visit http://healthfinder.gov/ Enter your age and gender in the myhealthfinder tool and you will receive specific information about what you can do stay healthy.

I hope you will join me in my celebration of life and make plans to stay as healthy as possible!

The rocker just kicked off a summer tour, during which he performs duets on stage with opener Sheryl Crow. Rock also plans to record another album after he gets off the road promoting his most recent LP, last year’s “Born Free.”

“I don’t think myself or my band has ever sounded or played better,” Rock told Rolling Stone . “I’m 40. I’m not going to be at the top of my game forever, but I am right now.”

It’s been 13 years since Kid Rock broke through with his album “Devil Without a Cause” back in 1998. The album went platinum 11 times.

“And I didn’t really anticipate it to go anywhere,” Rock told Rolling Stone. “I was doing what I needed to do. … I had a kid, no money, and all that [expletive.] I did some rap-rock stuff first, but I still did ‘Cowboy’ and ‘Only God Knows Why’ – for what I look back on as this really crazy, rounded record.

“And I’d kind of like to go back and do something with all the experience of being a better singer, better player, better songwriter, and just make this accumulation of what I do. I’m still not sure what I do, but whatever it is, I own it.”

Rock said he’s talking to Rick Rubin about producing a record for him again, which Rock hopes to release by next summer.

“With (‘Born Free’), he (Rubin) wanted to bring out the serious stuff in me, and we got it. Now I’m going to turn that frown upside down.”

In recent interviews Rock also talked about his short marriage to Pamela Anderson, several months that he called “the most fun” he’s ever had.

The rocker started dating the former Baywatch star in 2001 and were a couple (on and off) for five years. But the pair called it quits in 2006 after being married for just five months, reported the Toronto Sun .

“I don’t regret that (marrying Anderson), no. … It was a blast. …” Rock said.

Read more: http://www.myfoxaustin.com/dpps/entertainment/kid-rock-talks-about-turning-40-dpgoha-20110708-fc_14027769#ixzz1V3SiuV3n