Help My Friend Matt Staggs Celebrate His 80th Birthday

(Eldritch b-day cake in honor of Matt; taken from here.)Matt Staggs has come to be a close friend over the last 18 months or so. He entered my life at a time when I was feeling beaten down, and somewhat drained of confidence. (The scar tissue in this business can be ridiculous at times, even though I don't usually mention it here.)As I recall, he emailed me to say he enjoyed my work and would love to help me get the word out about it, and help forge creative relationships--in short, act as a kind of unofficial publicist and ideas guy. Within literally a week or two, he'd put me in touch with all kinds of interesting people, had suggested various projects that might be of use to me, and in general given me a huge boost. His energy lifted me up, and it was his energy that really helped take me out of that negative space. Ever since, he's been a trusted confidante and co-conspirator.It's his birthday today, and I just want to say thanks--and to suggest that if you know Matt, or you're just in a positive, outgoing mood, you send him happy birthday greetings. There're several ways to do that:Say it on twitter.Say it on his blog (any current entry will do--just pick one!)Say it via email at mattormeg(at)gmail.com.It's a momentous event, because Matt's turning 80 this year. Unfortunately, although he had been remarkably well-preserved, his age has now caught up with him because of working with me and other writers. (Another good reason to wish him the best--another year of this and he might not be around.) This is what he looked like just a year ago:And this is what he looks like now.