Category: Adventures of Being a Dad

I Beheld a Man

While waiting at a dentist’s office in El Monte my kids and I settled at some chairs and watched the Little Mermaid on the shared TV. They sat mesmerized by Ariel’s misadventures but my eyes were upon someone else. 
A man! 
He sat so still across the hall and his gaze was fixed upon a point I tried to identify. His skin had a shade of brown which had obviously been well baked under thousands of rays of sun over the years. His whisppy and thinning white hair was well manicured at both his balding head and pristine mustaches. 
A simple but elegant cane rested between his legs and on occasion his hands pressed the handle and he assured himself it was still there waiting along side him. 
He was thin but not frail. A stoic fixture in the room that commanded my respect without him saying one word. Maybe I saw the future in this gent? Could be I saw the past because he reminded me of my father? 
In any case he brought me joy while at the dental office and how many of us can claim that?

Mane Issue

If my son chose to he could sport a Classic Crew or a short pompadour. I may let him try the Caesar Cut and I’m partial on the Side Part. He could also look great with it Slicked Back and its certainly long enough for the Shaggy short. There’s a chance he could get away with the Fringe Crew and I know he’d look dapper if it was Swept Up. The Faux Hawk is a remote option along with the Asymmetrical w/Short Sides. Not sure about a Blow-Out though he can certainly pull it off and/or any cut the delectable Skeet Ulrich has chosen to brandish.
The point is that unlike me…my son has styling options because his mane is still SO generous where as mine is not. He chooses not to style though.

Hair is wasted on the young.

Oil Change

Every six to 8 months (give or take three) my dad would beckon me to the drive way.
It was time to change the oil on the old Ford Econoline Van. He was proud to have me on the ground worming my way into position and using man tools to coax bolts aside while grease caked my hands. His happiness was my dread in that I loathed having to grab an old piece of cardboard, placing it on the ground where the dust and dirt would eventually invade my nostrils.
Then there was the contortions my hands had to make in order to find the position which would finally yield torque on the bolts. The heat in East LA was ever present and I could feel how it made me sweat about my eyes. Sometimes, a mixture of Aqua Net & sweat would enter my eye sockets and then they would sting.
Finally there were his barks and orders… always complaining about my overall bad attitude. Then finally I’d release the bolt and black fluid would pour out for a few minutes onto a tray. While that happened I could just lie in my place and close my eyes thinking of the other places I’d rather be. Soon thereafter the job was done and I had to tend to other chores.

Thank goodness I wouldn’t be back under that car for 6 to 8 months (give or take three).

Malice and Indifference and Cruelty

Because of my station in life I can sometimes forget about the malice, indifference and cruelty that rest in the hearts of people. Lately, my children ask me questions stemming from their history lessons. I’m obliged to dialog with them about mankind’s lesser moments. 
They sometimes ask if things are better now. 
As is my policy…I do not lie to my children.

The Known Unknowns

I did not know he didn’t know but because he was my father I always believed him. 
Like the time he told me that the Titanic was SO big that you could start walking at one end in the morning and you would not reach the other end until late evening. The assertion that dinosaurs still lived in parts of Mexico and the government was hiding them. His knowledge that American women were trouble. Or that the Cowboys were and would forever be America’s greatest football team. He never meant any harm but it was a little disconcerting when I started learning truths. 
Now I wonder…what will the kids come to learn was a misconception on my part? Whatever it is I hope it endears me to them just a wee bit more.

Hen Delivered

My hens show me something new everyday. My dogs teach me stuff all the time. My kids hand me lesson constantly. My wife course corrects me full time. My friends make me wonder quite often. The interwebs gives me info I take in with a grain-of-salt. 
You know…for a bloke that has been out of school for a long time I haven’t had a day when something fresh makes it into my grey matter.

Sleepless in Monrovia

I find myself barely holding on after a very long night of struggle. Cold and frustrated I realize that I am solely responsible for the choices I made yesterday. I hope this confession serves as warning to others and as I think of my wife now sleeping on the couch I hope to have learned my lesson. But I’ve done this before and since past is prologue I fear this may happen again.
The YouTube is full of scary videos about Chupacabras, Big Feet, ghosts in photos, Jersey Devils, Slender Men, Dutch peole and more. Watching these creepy-pastas with the kids is a sure way to have a rebellion based on fears at bed time. We acquiesced and let them sleep in hours. Trying to share space with two kids and two dogs is no fun and I spent most the night moderating groggy disagreements over imaginary borders, shifting confused mutts about and seeing my wedge of the bed shrink and shrink and shrink.

I’d carp more but only have myself to blame.

Make a Wish

As I half-patiently waited at my front door for my youngest to gather up her school stuffs my oldest started to make his way up the street.  
He seemed so resolute as he walked past the threshold of our property and towards the foggy foothills to the north. My first instinct as always was to tell him to wait but his stride told me that he was okay to go and so I watched him. My youngest took longer then usual but finally she darted out and as started to catch up to my boy up ahead I saw him kneel at a neightbour’s yard and pick up a dandelion or two. He was making wishes. 
Hopes that I didn’t feel i needed to inquire about or perhaps I was making my own wish and that’s that he would stay young like this just a little more longer.