Happy Father's Day!

I really thought I’d be a mess today. I was grateful that I’d be working my third straight 12 hour shift, because it would make it easy to ignore the fact that my daddy isn’t around to celebrate anymore. I was pleasantly surprised that I found myself focusing on the things I loved about Dad, instead of my sadness in missing him.

Today I remembered that my Dad was the one who:
-Insisted on planning “secret vacations” even when he knew I’d guess the destination before we even left West Linn.
- Made the most predictable school lunches ever- Sandwich, bag of chips, ding dong and a pepsi. Wednesdays were the best, since that was PB&J day.
- Surprised us after 8 hour dance practices with ice cream sandwiches for the whole team.
-knew the exact locations of both the In-N-Out and the liquor store closest to the California-Oregon border.
-played the A League of Their Own soundtrack tape for me so many times that I’m pretty sure we wore the tape out.
-Always gave me a two-stroke-per-hole handicap when we played The Children’s Course, even after he had custom clubs made for me during my one year of high school golf.
-would stay up “late” to watch CSI with me on Thursday nights.
-decided to play Jimmy Buffett throughout the house while he cleaned on Saturday mornings, and turned it up when he thought I’d been sleeping too long.
- exercised extreme patience with me as I displayed extreme frustration as he taught me how to drive a stick through the streets of the Sunset neighborhood.
- would treat me to Taco Bell before dance class each week in middle school. (and I never even puked!)
-ignored the fact that soccer year round, dance year round and a rotating other sport, clearly violated the “two-sport rule.”
- would wait for me in the “Mark” row of the church parking lot each Sunday night, for more than 5 years.
-ordered Mint-Chocolate-Chip every. Single. Time. We went to Baskin Robbins.
- wake me up early to join him at the Rotary Easter Breakfast, to help flip pancakes and make eggs.
- let me run around the fire station picking out toys to help him and his Chamber friends put together gift baskets for needy families in the community at Christmastime.
-always had a full cookie jar. Even if it’s the creepiest cookie jar in existence.
- let us stay up late (or wake up early) to watch Princess Diana’s funeral.
- Took me on a drinking tour of Chicago to celebrate my 21st birthday.
-Let me take an extra week of Spring Break my senior year of high school, just so I could experience Opening Day with the A’s.

These are just a few of the memories that made me smile today. And to celebrate, I finished the day with a margarita and Deadliest Catch marathon… and I don’t think I’m drinking alone.

Thanks Daddy, for more great memories over 23 years than most daughters have in 50.