It’s my birthday, so I can give you a gift if I want to.

Yes, friends, today, August 7th, is my birthday. Some 37 years ago in some Connecticut backwater, I first graced this earth. And while me mentioning my birthday may be seen as a cheap blog ploy, a way to get a bunch of comments saying, "Happy Birthday, Shawn!", this isn't the case, necessarily.* No. On this...