Father's Day

I was watching Fox and Friends this morning when they showed pictures of the hosts and their dads. Right now, I'm sitting about 2 miles from my dad, and I can't see him. He's buried in Sparkman/Hillcrest right next to my mom. I envy people who get to spend this special day with their dads, even if it is a made up Hallmark day. My dad was quite a character. He could tell some stories that you would never know were true or not, until one of his brother's would verify them. One he told was about going to law school with LBJ. He couldn't stand the guy. Nothing changed when Johnson became president by default in 1963. To quote my dad, " He (LBJ) was a horse's ass back then, and he's still a horse's ass!" And this was from a Democrat. Yep, my dad was a Dem, but thankfully, he got over it when Reagan made that speech in '64. So, he was a Reagan Democrat, then became a full fledged Republican. Because, as Reagan said, he didn't leave the party, the party left him. My dad was an older man. All my friends thought he was my grandfather. Nope, he's my dad I'd tell them. The man was born in 1907 for cryin' out loud, of course he was old. But, he and my mom (born in 1911) weren't able to have their own children, and from what my mom told me, it wasn't for the lack of trying. TMI mom! He, like so many men, joined the Army after the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor. Before he was shipped overseas, he witnessed a fiery car crash involving a general's daughter. Well, my dad being who he was, saved the girl, and ended up spending 18 months in the burn unit recovering from 3rd degree burns over 80% of his body. It was a miracle he survived! So, because of his injuries, they decided to adopt. All four of us! Between my dad and his 8 brothers (German farm family), the stories kept all of us kids entertained for hours. Like running "bootleg" from Louisiana, and the day they brought Bonnie and Clyde to the mortuary where my uncle worked. All the "boys" had to go see the bodies. The story about how he and my mom met, and he ended up getting seriously sloshed her dad on their first date drinking Ouzo. I miss my dad!