Nathan Brinbaum was a tremendous fellow. He said more good and funny things then almost anyone else I can think of. Among his many outstanding accomplishments was that he lived to be 100 years old. He once said, “If you live to be 100 you got it made. Very few people die past that age.” Up until the very end of his life, he loved to entertain and make people laugh.
When he got older, much of what he said had had to do with his age. “Retirement at sixty-five is ridiculous. When I was sixty-five I still had pimples.” He once said, “You know you’re getting old when you bend down to tie your shoelace and wonder what else you could do while you’re down here.”
He wrote six books. He thought that was a great accomplishment “for a guy who has only read two.” He was widowed after 38 years of marriage. He and his wife worked together. “I read a book twice as fast as anybody else,” she said. “First, I read the beginning, and then I read the ending, and then I start in the middle and read toward whatever end I like best.” She had a great sense of humor. She once remarked, “When I was born, I was so surprised I didn’t talk for a year and a half.”
He was a happy man. “I would rather be a failure at something I love, then a success at something I hate.” It isn’t hard to figure out why he lived and laughed to be 100.
He is most often quoted with the words..."Say Good Night Gracie."
Nathan Brinbaum (aka George Burns)
Jim Gustafson is author of Take Fun Seriously -- Little Thoughts and Big Ideas for Living Laughing and Loving. He was ordained in the United Methodist Church and has served as a local church pastor, pastoral counselor and consultant. He has more than 25 years in sales and marketing management. http://www.jimgustafson.com
Source: www.a1articles.com
