How Great He Art

A big shout out to my Big Brother – Happy Birthday to the best brother in the whole world.

Tip Of The Day:  Take time out of your busy schedule today and acknowledge someone you know.  When was the last time stopped to say, “hey, you’re pretty awesome?”  If it’s been longer than a week, you’ve got some awesome-calling catching up to do.

And remember, telling someone they rock?  Is free.

Tip For Tomorrow:  Tips on tipping – how much, when and why.  Because it’s okay to be cheap, not a cheapskate.  Read it here, and then watch it on Fox 9 News at 5.

Further Elucidation Of My Cheap Deal:  Have you ever thought to yourself; ‘Self, I wonder why The Cheap Chick is so well-adjusted and normal’ (humor me here)?  Is it due to a. good psychiatric care? b. strong drugs? or c. the love and care of her big brother?  If you guessed c., you are correct!  Circle gets a square!

My Big Brother is one of the main reasons why I am the person I am today (all the good parts anyway.  The bad parts are my own fault).  From the day I was born, he’s been my body-guard, advisor, roll-model and good friend.  Granted, he also used to eat garlic, pin me down, and breathe on me, but I’ve gotten over it.

In case you were wondering, and even if you weren’t, here are a few of the ways my Big Brother is AWESOME:

1.  He is the best gift-giver.  Even as a small boy, Big Brother knew how to pick out the very gift you’ve always wanted.  For example, when everyone in my 6th grade class owned something from Dayton’s Boundary Waters collection (except for me), he gave me their hottest/best selling item for Christmas – the duck sweatshirt.  Nowadays, his gifts run toward things like IPods and digital cameras and DVD players…

2.  He sticks up for the people he loves.  Big Brother put the beat down on bullies when I was young, intervened on my behalf when I was fighting with my parents, and generally shielded me from mean people.  Apparently, he’s the only one who gets to pick on me.  Everyone else better watch out.

3.  He is proud of other people’s accomplishments, and doesn’t forget to tell them that.  When I first started this whole blog/TV/Media Empire enterprise, Big Brother turned to me one day and said, “I am really proud of what you’ve done.”  That meant more to me than any TV gig ever will.

4.  He is supportive.  When my SIL decided to give law school a try, her husband (that would be my Big Brother), covered their household expenses – including new student loans – so she could go full time.  When I quit my lucrative job in marketing to figure out a new career path, he told me he was proud that I was so brave to try something new.  And when I thought about going into real estate, he and my SIL were the ones to convince me to do it.

5.  He is an excellent husband and father.  My Big Brother has set a very high standard for my future husband (hey, it could happen) to live up to.  I now expect my man to be successful in his chosen career, highly intelligent, well-read, really funny, cuddly, considerate, tolerant of others, and a gourmet cook.

As for being a good dad, I’d say this picture says all the words necessary:

So please join me in wishing a very Happy Birthday to one of the best men I know.  I wish you all could have a brother as awesome as mine, but sadly, there is only one and he belongs to ME.