“Time,” an otherwise forgettable Star Trek villain once said, “is the fire in which we burn.”

As we transition into 2010, I’m once again faced with one of those watershed moments. Not only are we collectively closing the chapter on a decade, but I’m closing the chapter on a PERSONAL decade. My birthday, as anyone with Facebook can tell you, was December 29. This year I hit the big 4-0.

What the heck happened to the past ten years? Did I make the most of my thirties? What is this alien girth lodged around my midsection?  These pressing questions will have to wait until I’m no longer pecking out keys on a tiny netbook in Europe. As Plato once said, you can’t tackle philosophy without a full size keyboard. But one of the reasons we’re here on the Continent is that ticking clock…

Bruges is like something out of a storybook -- a pop-up book with lots of pretty pictures!

If you've ever seen the movie In Bruges you may recognize the tower. You wouldn't want to get pushed from the top...

View from our hotel in Bruges -- this city is beautiful! You can see the famous tower in the distance.

What can we say -- this place rocks!

Every visit to Europe should include some nice cathedrals. These views can't be captured on camera, but I did my best.

We lit a candle in honor of loved ones lost in 2009 (rest in peace Mike Nix)

Awesome cathedral in Bruges... We pay homage to generations who carpe diem'd before us...

My father likes to quote the legendary baseball pitcher Satchel Paige, whose professional career spanned forty years: “How old would you be if you didn’t know how old you are?”

It’s actually a provocative question if you give it proper consideration.

So in the spirit of “40 is the new 30,” I’ll choose to be 30.

And now, on to 2010.

Here are a few photos from our ongoing Christmas / birthday / New Year’s trip to Germany and Belgium.