List 2.3 A Shout Out to My Dad
O.k. So first off, I should have a cooler picture of my dad. This is a good one but he has his "I am a groovy academic guy" face on and I have cooler photos of him doing neat things with the family but I am working on the laptop sans access to our digital photos right now so you will have to make do with this photo from my dad's academic webpage.
My groovy dad is going through a bit of a crap time right now. I don't really want to tell the universe about his private business but I feel compelled to mention that he is having radiation therapy so that is really not fun at all. I keep telling him to get drunk on good wine on a regular basis, eat a lot of chocolate, and go on good vacations with his lovely new wife Sue but I think the day to day reality of having a billion radiation treatments in a row is bringing him down. So I wanted to give him a shout out by mentioning a small sampling of the neat things about my dad. So here is a list of some of them.
17. My dad has shaved his head for a long time and he looks very debonair that way (see above).
16. When I was around 9 or 10, my dad made me my very own toolbox full of real tools. He painted the box green and all of my tools had a green painted handle. I had a saw and a hammer and a t-square and nails. I used to go down into the basement and hammer wood together. He was the original sexual equality guy.
15. My dad coached my soccer team for a long time. He always brought the orange cones for drills and good snacks for half-time.
14. My dad does really cool research about how to help people manipulate their own behavior to have less unprotected sex, less drunk driving, and less chance of transmitting AIDS. He also taught college athletes how to study and be successful outside of the sporting arena.
13. He is a funny guy. He doesn't really tell jokes but he does make these funny observations about life. When I was little and crabby, he would always joke me out of it.
12. He is an AWESOME cook. At one point I think he vaguely considered being a gourmet chef. He makes wonderful bread, great souffles, and lots of other delicious meat dishes that I no longer eat. He also makes great homemade french fries.
11. He is a pretty calm, centered guy. I'm all for calm people.
10. My dad has good taste in music from blues to classical to zydeco. He also introduced me to the Beatles and the J. Geils Band. Rock on.
9. He reads both trashy mysteries and the New York Times. I like the breadth of intellect there.
8. Once when I was little I thought I might be depressed. So I asked my dad, "hey, dad, do you think I am depressed?" And he said, "well, are crappy things happening in your life right now?" And I said, "yes." And he said, "well, it sounds like you have some good reasons to be sad. Let me know if you don't feel better in a few weeks but right now I would say that you don't need drugs." I thought that was a pretty well considered response.
7. Although now he is a hotel kind of guy, my dad did introduce me to camping and fishing.
6. He has good fashion-sense. He always has groovy shoes and good sweaters. Never underestimate the power of good shoes and nice sweaters.
5. He is a good conversationalist and likes to talk to people about politics, art, books, and current issues in society.
4. My dad split the household chores evenly with my mom. Not only did this provide me with an excellent role model but it reflects very well on his own striving for equality in all things personal and political. You go Dad!
3. He composts and recycles.
2. He has a great green thumb and prunes his own fruit trees. I love his Johnny Appleseed side.
1. He is a great grandpa. He loves Lucy and Josie and visits them regularly, taking lots of photos and showering them with love and gifts.
I have a great Dad. And I am sure that the juggernaut of reality will stop bludgeoning him any week now and will give the poor guy a break. Hang in there Dad.
14. My dad does really cool research about how to help people manipulate their own behavior to have less unprotected sex, less drunk driving, and less chance of transmitting AIDS. He also taught college athletes how to study and be successful outside of the sporting arena.
13. He is a funny guy. He doesn't really tell jokes but he does make these funny observations about life. When I was little and crabby, he would always joke me out of it.
12. He is an AWESOME cook. At one point I think he vaguely considered being a gourmet chef. He makes wonderful bread, great souffles, and lots of other delicious meat dishes that I no longer eat. He also makes great homemade french fries.
11. He is a pretty calm, centered guy. I'm all for calm people.
10. My dad has good taste in music from blues to classical to zydeco. He also introduced me to the Beatles and the J. Geils Band. Rock on.
9. He reads both trashy mysteries and the New York Times. I like the breadth of intellect there.
8. Once when I was little I thought I might be depressed. So I asked my dad, "hey, dad, do you think I am depressed?" And he said, "well, are crappy things happening in your life right now?" And I said, "yes." And he said, "well, it sounds like you have some good reasons to be sad. Let me know if you don't feel better in a few weeks but right now I would say that you don't need drugs." I thought that was a pretty well considered response.
7. Although now he is a hotel kind of guy, my dad did introduce me to camping and fishing.
6. He has good fashion-sense. He always has groovy shoes and good sweaters. Never underestimate the power of good shoes and nice sweaters.
5. He is a good conversationalist and likes to talk to people about politics, art, books, and current issues in society.
4. My dad split the household chores evenly with my mom. Not only did this provide me with an excellent role model but it reflects very well on his own striving for equality in all things personal and political. You go Dad!
3. He composts and recycles.
2. He has a great green thumb and prunes his own fruit trees. I love his Johnny Appleseed side.
1. He is a great grandpa. He loves Lucy and Josie and visits them regularly, taking lots of photos and showering them with love and gifts.
I have a great Dad. And I am sure that the juggernaut of reality will stop bludgeoning him any week now and will give the poor guy a break. Hang in there Dad.
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