Fathers

I have a lot of things to be grateful for when it comes to Father's Day. I have been thinking a lot lately about men and husbands and fathers, and I apologize for this epic long blog entry. Remember this is pretty much my journal, so for posterity's sake, bear with me.

First, I want to thank my hubby, Bart. He's not yet a father, but a husband he is and a wonderful one at that. I want him to know that I think he is amazing and such a great man. He is definitely my complementary half. I admire so much about him, and I hope he understands that he makes me a better person. There are many traits that I am less than stellar at such as generosity and patience. He helps me see the big picture when I am too involved to step back and see. He balances my emotional side when I cling too quickly to unsure things only to be disappointed when they do indeed change. He has perspective on many aspects of life I have never known. He is mine, all mine, and I love him with all my heart. Thanks for these great years we have had together!


Second, I listen to the radio every morning on the way to work and I try to flip to a different channel if the commercials come on, but sometimes they are unavoidable. I have noticed an awful trend in the way companies market to couples these days. The woman always smart and practical and the man is always slow, predictable, and stereotypical. I thought that maybe they are doing this to market towards who they think are the spenders of the households, women. I honestly don't know their demographics, but who cares? I am so sick of them dumbing down the husbands because it wouldn't be politically correct the other way around. You know that if they dumbed down the wife they'd have a lawsuit on their hands, but dumbing down the husband? No problem! I'm sorry, but my husband, and none that I know of, act the way they are trying to portray them and I find it hugely offensive when I have to listen to them degrade our husbands over and over again every morning. What is this world coming to?

Third, My dad is amazing. Can I just give him a shout out? He is such an unbelievable example in my life. Here is a man who started as a beer stacking, poly-sci major from the U of U, who found himself a small analyst job in the investment banking world and just ran with it. He's done the same thing his whole working life basically, and still absolutely loves it and excels in it. He works outrageous hours, flies more square miles than pilots (exaggeration, but close!), and still has managed to raise us kids with stability and love. As I have started working over the past year, I have begun to see what it would take to make it in this business. Let's just say, I am left in awe that, though my dad was at work for a large percentage of my childhood years, I don't feel I have missed out on one single thing with regards to a normal and healthy father/daughter relationship, which means he has had to work 150% to make sure he was always there for us. And he was! For those who know my father, he is an eclectic, endearing man that just draws people to him. He is stubborn and smart, the combination of which means he is always right. (with a few exceptions!! :) We joke because he is a renaissance man of a zillion hobbies, most of which left unfinished, but always interesting and well worth the effort of involvement. All those interests, hobbies if you will, have helped him raise us to be well rounded kids with many interests in wide variety of things.

Some things he has done:
Grew Bonsai trees
Collected old books
Paid us girls to read his books when we were little (I was probably the only one who actually did it, and who could blame him? What 12 year old would actually read books like The Princess of Mars and Tarzan of the Apes?)
Became a published poet
Tried to learn the piano
Tried to learn Quechua - the ancient language of the Incans. (He taught me one word - yana - which means white - I think)
Built rock mailboxes for the whole cul-de-sac
Built a seven foot meat smoker in our back yard.
Grew rose bushes
Bought and restored old cars (with some or a lot of help from mechanics!) He rides one of them in the Huntsville 4th of July parade.
Started cycling
Trained for a marathon
Built a house with a life size sorry board
Built that same house with a life size hedge maze
Made a bronzing relief for our fireplace
Learned to snowboard (said he wouldn't stop until he was better than Bart!)
Cornered the market on setting up financing for municipalities like ports, trains, and road infrastructure.
Helped my mom raise 4 kids all in the church.

Hey, dad. If you are reading this, I hope you know that I love you and I can only hope I will have been able to do what you have done in my own life. You are amazing and so inspiring. Thanks for being such a great example to Bart and me. We know what hard work is from your example and the way you handle it gracefully inspires us to do the same. Thanks especially for showing me that it is okay to be your quirky self, no matter how old you get and no matter what sphere of life you are in. Thank you for everything.