Elderly Man…

…heh…he’ll get the joke.

Though really, my dad isn’t elderly. Far from it, having survived a heart attack and does his best to walk every morning, test himself on the fitness trail at the local park, and continues to work and play with his trains; along with help me go about maintaining a house.

For those who don’t know me, I’m a Daddy’s Girl! I adore him to no end! Why? Because somehow he understands me enough to make me laugh at my own quirks. He’ll occasionally call me his son, vaguely due to the fact that in high school I picked up a nickname of the male gender; because…well…I’m not all that feminine personality wise! When he bought the women in his family porcelain pendants, he was so dead one with the dragon (as I’ve seen them around before but couldn’t decide which one I wanted if I ever could afford one) that I haven’t taken it off since. And though he occasionally forgets that I understand logic and physics (a class I should have taken in high school instead of chemistry), it’s fun to see the delight in his eyes when he’s reminded and reiterates how I’m not all that girly.

I LOVE MY DAD! And I have some really fun memories that even revolve around his previous birthdays!

I spent my first summer as a SCAD student at home with my parents. By the time Dad’s birthday came around, I was working the graveyard shift at a nearby gas station. It was pretty fun, despite being left in the sub-station making coffee and muffins in preparation for the morning rush that I was normally gone in time for. I had worked the night before and into the morning of his birthday, and had asked for his birthday night off so I could enjoy the day with him, Mom, Statler, and Kermit’s godparents at…HERSHEY PARK! Why there? BECAUSE WE LOVE ROLLERCOASTERS! Mom doesn’t, but Dad and his girls do! OH THE FUN!

So I get home from work at around 6am, wonder into my room to find…!!! A computer game I had been obsessing about (I can’t wait for Dungeon Siege 3 to come out next year!) all summer and a DVD drive for my computer! That’s right! Dad gave me gifts for his birthday! How awesome is that?! My friends still can’t figure out how that works, but I’m not going to question it. All I know is that when it comes to his birthday and X-mas, all he ever wants is to spend time with his daughters. No other gifts really matter as much.

Excited about the DVD drive because I had gotten a movie that I couldn’t watch because…I didn’t own a DVD player; I accidently woke him up trying to install the damn thing into my computer. Sadly, I couldn’t remember how to open my computer to install it. He had been hoping to wake up to find me playing the game so he could watch me play it…just to see what it was like, but of course…that wasn’t the case. “Go make breakfast and I’ll have it up and running by the time you’re done!” The computer was put back together and the game was up and running like I said it would be! And I was overjoyed when I got to get past the part where the DEMO I had normally stopped me. Basically, my convincing argument for getting the game: I work overnight hours. None of my friends are up that late to chat with, and I don’t want to keep you and Mom up watching TV. What better way to keep my sleeping schedule in tact by playing a video game on my nights off?

Now, I know what you’re thinking, as my sister didn’t understand why I worked the night before Dad’s birthday and not ask for it off along with the night after. I didn’t want to risk for asking for too much time off then. Heh…I knew what I was doing. Basically I took a catnap on the drive up to the park (hour long), to which we went around riding roller coasters, including a kiddy one that was like taking a trolley around a western themed area that helped to settle our stomachs for lunch. Seriously…it was that tame. Then there was the original Mighty Mouse that Mom rode because it didn’t have any loopty-loops; she can’t handle the good stuff. And after some disappointment in waiting in line for a coaster ride that had been on and off all day, they went to ride the teacups with Mom and then drove home. Hour long actually dead asleep nap in the car again, and then I was up all night playing my game. That’s right! I had the college student stamina back then to endure being up over 24 hours, take a short nap, and stay up another few hours…all to spend time with my dad and play a video game! WEEE!

But the best birthday was his 60th! It was the first time visiting my current home town, seeing their new house, and going to the local tavern. And the way Mom set it all up was amazing! Two weeks earlier we were all in NYC to watch a Yankees game for the last time in the old stadium. Dad with all three of his daughters, one of which lives in NM while I was living in GA, so he really didn’t expect to see either of us for his birthday. The boyfriend at the time and I drove up with the cats, cause Mom said we could, with the money she gave us to cover gas and food.

Before that, she had been emailing a close friend of Dad’s about coming up to visit, and he, the Giant Leprechaun, changed the title and format of the email to make it look like he was up and coming for a visit, kind of like a last minute decision. There’re plenty of Civil War battlefields to visit in the area, and he and Dad are into the history of it all, so it made sense. Dad was excited; he got to hang out with his buddy for his birthday. Passing the house in the car, GL parks it up the street and meanders into the yard…knocking on the door when he says Mom through the window. So he and Dad go to the tavern for a drink and don’t get home with his car until JUST after me and the bf start unloading ours of the cats and luggage. “What a surprise! What are you doing here? And you brought the mangy beasts?!” “Mom said we could!”

We were in the middle of talking about something in the living room…as we normally do…later that evening when the bf goes to put a can in the recyclable bin out back. As Dad has his back to the doorway, and the bf just so happens to be out back in time to let her in, Kermit quietly sneaks in with her newest baby...who is sleeping so he’s obviously not loud enough to draw Dad’s attention. She stands there for a minute or two before announcing her presence; to which Dad nearly has a heart attack! It surprised him so much to see my sister there, because she lives so far away! Again, Mom fronted the money for her plane ticket…just to have the three of us there for his 60th! Statler picked her up at the airport and let her borrow one of her cars to drive into town.

The following day, GL, bf, and Dad go walk Antietam Battlefield and later go to the tavern again for a beer and oysters. On and on Dad talks about this Beer Tasting Dinner that they occasionally have and how he’s never been to one but they sounded great, with good food and beer from all over the world. Five course meal cooked fresh with produce from the local farms and a different kind of beer to compliment each course. Oh! I can’t remember everything we had, but the dessert was my favorite! Flakey kind of pastry with cream and fruits! I wish I could have it again…

Low and behold, the next day, for Dad’s birthday, more people show up by surprise, and not only that…they’re there for a BEER TASTING DINNER Mom had arranged for the big day! He’s declared it the best birthday of his life. Mom really outdid herself this time around, with all the surprises and having his daughters there to share it with. Hee!

Happy Birthday, Dad! Can’t say today is going to be as good as two years ago, but I’m sure you’ll love it either way!