Former NBA basketball player Charles Barkley once made a commercial in which he proclaimed that he was not a role model. http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=R8vh2MwXZ6o I can appreciate that. Especially, where cancer is concerned. If you’re a regular reader of my blog or just know me, you know my wife died of cancer almost nine years ago. Now when…
Month: June 2013
Mixing business and pleasure
There’s just something special about seeing kids working, voluntarily, on some chores around the house. And if you can’t get them to do it by their own free will, then you can always resort to manipulation. I found that worked pretty well last week when I needed to wash the car. “Hey,” I called to…
The 5 1/2 days of Father’s Day
My daughter and I were sitting at my son’s final baseball game of the year this past Tuesday night. And it was hot. Real hot. I was trying to figure out some way to cool down. I thought too bad that Father’s Day is still almost five days away or I could ask my daughter…
Getting involved with the kids . . . in a drinking game
It’s funny how sometimes some of the best memories aren’t planned at all. At a family reunion, I was trying to choose a drink for my son from some limited choices: water, unsweet tea, sweet tea, and strawberry lemonade. “Mmmmmmmm. Strawberry lemonade,” I thought. I didn’t want to get it for myself because of the sugar,…
Swinging away
My son has never hit a home run before. Oh, he’s taken some big swings. And he’s collected a few hits, but never a home run. This is his fifth year to play. We survived two years of T-ball. (If you’ve never had the pleasure of taking in a T-ball game, count yourself blessed. In…
Escaping to a special place
In times of great stress (or boredom – think long meetings), I have a place I escape to mentally. Actually, I have about five such places. Four of those are just rooms I like. Relaxing places. Calming places. But one of my mental escapes is an event. It was February 2006. My then 12-year-old daughter, H, and I…
9 Reasons why your kid might not be the doctor’s favorite patient
I’ve been dealing with a sick kid all week. He’s got all the typical symptoms doctors look for before pronouncing judgment – cough, fever, waking zombie-like in the middle of the night, demanding a wide variety of drinks, and commandeering the tv so that you’re stuck watching Sponge Bob rather than something intelligent, like pro…
I’ve already got 8 dogs in the fire
As a former high school coach I used to cover used to say, “There ain’t nothing worse . . .” That’s the best way to describe kids being sick in the middle of the night. (He was actually talking about playing his team’s biggest rival, but that’s another story). And yes, there really ain’t nothing worse than…
Dad, can I ask you a question
I don’t know what it is about kids and questions. I think all kids tend to ask a lot, and my nine-year-old son is right up there with the best of them. My son often shoots them out with machine-gun speed, and they can range from the weather to his future to sex. Luckily for me,…
Holding together the jello 