Happy Birthday, Dustin!

Well, today is Dustin’s birthday. And he thinks that he’s old. Which is kindof cute. Because he’s practically a baby.

For those of you who are just checking in, Dustin is my sister Allison’s boyfriend. They’ve been dating for like 17 years now (ok, it’s more like six? Seven? I can never remember). So, he’s pretty much my brother-in-law. Except that there is a big party with (hopefully!) an open bar in our future.

I sometimes refer to him as an out-law.

Because, you know, I’m clever like that.

You know that you’re an extremely lucky person when all of your siblings manage to find significant others who you not only like and get along with but who you actually look forward to hanging out with. Sure, I only know Dustin because he happens to be dating my sister. But, I still consider him a friend. I think that this whole blog-off thing pretty much proves that.

Some of my fondest memories are of when Dustin and Allison were able to hang out with Kristian and me. There are always a lot of laughs. The kind that come from deep down in your belly and leave you thinking that maybe you don’t need to do any crunches for the day. Because, you’re laughing so hard that your entire body is getting a workout. 

I have fond memories of having Allison and Dustin over for dinner at our old apartment in Somerville. We made dinner together and then ate it on the front porch. It was a beautiful summer evening, the kind that leaves everything with a vaguely warm glow. The kind where it just seems wrong to not be eating corn on the cob (we had corn with our dinner). I remember driving with them to my sister Christina’s post-wedding brunch and getting stuck in absolutely horrific traffic. It didn’t much matter, though, because we were all too busy laughing. 

And, while I’m sad that Kristian wasn’t able to come with us, I had an absolutely fantastic time hanging out with Allison and Dustin when I flew out to California for a couple of weeks the summer before last.

So, happy birthday, Dustin! I hope that you are able to milk your day for everything that you can. And, while my sister has made it a New Years resolution to not bug you about getting hitched, I have made no such promise. So, why don’t you go ahead and make an honest woman out of my sister? Or, at the very least, it would be pretty sweet if the two of you got hitched. Because, I like considering you a friend and I’d really like to have you as a brother.

You have eight and a half months to think of something nice to say on my birthday. Because, if I don’t get an awesome birthday blog post, I’m a gonna kick your ass. Muahahaha.