If your 40th birthday is on the horizon, it's time to start thinking about how you want to celebrate it. Don't feel you've got to do something you don't really want to do, such as throw a huge party if parties are not your thing. However, do make sure you mark the occasion properly. It's an important milestone in your life and it's better to embrace it than ignore it. So many of my friends and family have turned 40 in the past ten years that, if you're wondering what to do for your fortieth, I feel I'm in a good position to offer you some suggestions. My sister Olivia is a connoisseuse of wine and for her 40th we organised a wine-tasting party at my house. An expert brought some bottles and talked us through the 'legs' and the 'nose' of each one. Needless to say, we didn't spit anything out - but we did learn quite a lot and, as our present to her, my husband and I sent Olivia on a wine-tasting tour of the Abruzzo region of Italy. My husband's best friend had a murder mystery party. Josh is shy and doesn't like large gatherings but he wanted to do something different from the usual get-together-and-chat with his three or four close friends. We all came in costume and stayed in character until the end of the evening, when the murderer was exposed. A bit of acting can be a lot of fun. Born in 1963, my friend David threw a 60s theme party for his 40th birthday. We all wore groovy costumes - flares, hippy shades, kaftans, garlands, mini-skirts, peacenik sandals, headbands - and had a high old time bopping away to the Beatles, the Rolling Stones and the Small Faces. He had videos of some TV shows from the Sixties, which we watched when we flagged, and 1960s party food, including a mean prawn cocktail. Jessica, my new friend from the gym, had a make-over party. An image consultant and a make-up artist came and transformed us, gave us loads of advice and made us feel like film stars. A photographer was also there, to record the fun we had and to take glamorous shots of us all dolled up. My friend Sarah enjoys a bit of a flutter now and again and, for her 40th birthday, we organised a race evening for her. You can hire films of races and you bet on the outcome, though in our case we decided it was safer to use play money. We awarded prizes to the most successful punters and a special prize to Sarah for winning the day, as it were. A magician is an excellent addition to any party. At my friend Jason's 40th birthday party, the magician took my ring and made it vanish. A second later, without him having moved at all, it appeared tied on to his shoelace! In a few weeks it will be my own 40th birthday and I've decided to spend it in New York, with my husband. Although I've never been to America at all, I have a feeling that the Big Apple is an ideal place to wake up 40. We'll do loads of shopping, take in a show on Broadway and visit all the city's hotspots - and cool spots. All this will give me a burst of energy to carry me into my fifth decade.
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