With a birthday looming in my near future, I have been doing a lot of thinking back on my life. I was very lucky for an 'ugly duckling' to have a father as I did. My father taught me that it was what was inside of you that counted and not what you looked like or had.

I grew up going to nice places with my Dad for lunch. The places would differ but they always had a bar. One thing any kind of bar will show you is once someones had a few drinks, they will fall into certain categories. These categories do not care how much you have or what you own. They don't care if people like you or not.

A happy drunk is a happy drunk and can have nothing to his name. Just as a mean drunk can have it all, by today's society's standards. Growing up seeing doctors and lawyers become just 'normal' people after a few drinks, makes you see the world in a more realistic way.

In a restaurant, it should not matter your age or what you order. Service, great service, to you, should not matter on how you look. My Dad was a fair man when it came to the service he expected. He taught me that in any situation to treat all with respect. This also means others should respect you too.

I was told more than once when I walk I show confidence. I found this an interesting thing for someone to say to me. I never knew a walk could tell someone anything way back then. To this day I thank my Dad for the confidence he bestowed in me without me even knowing it.

Always remember and never forget you are the same as the human next to you. If they decided not to acknowledge you many things can play a part as to why. What you can know for sure is, it is not you, the real you, that is at fault. It can be anything from 'it is not your time to meet that person', to 'it is not healthy for you to meet them'.

At the time it might seem the end of the world, but in the end, it doesn't matter, as long as you know it's not you.