Archive for the ‘fathers day’ Tag
Well, it’s 2023 and time for another Father’s Day. I’m not about to write a lot of sloppy and maudlin feelings about this day but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t have special meaning for me. My father and I had an up-and-down relationship for decades but once he accepted my independence and I accepted his role in my life, we became friends. It took 40 years and a triple bypass surgery for him and a whole lot of growing up by me. We had our difficulties and arguments and I miss not having them with him every day, not just on Father’s Day. I’m also a father and a stepfather and a grandfather with relationships with all of these people. The fact that I’m not much of a people-person makes its hard work for me but the end result is rewarding whether I want to admit it or not. With all of that in mind I thought I’d do what I always do and find opinions and thoughts of other people on the same subject and here they are.
- “It is much easier to become a father than to be one.” Kent Nerburn (1946)
- “What a father kept silent the son speaks out.” Frederick Nietzsche (1844-1900)
- “There must always be a struggle between father and son, while one aims at power and the other at independence.” Samuel Johnson 1790-1784
- “I learned as a youth that when I defended my rights by open rebellion my father relented, but when I remained meek and submissive, he only cursed and beat me the more.” Mao Tse-tung (1893-1976)
- “As long as I have been in the White House, I can’t help waking up at 5 AM and hearing the old man at the foot of the stairs calling and telling me to get out and milk the cows.” Harry S Truman (1884 to 1972)
As you can plainly see, everyone has a different approach to describing their relationship with their father. It’s always complicated and sometimes difficult but everybody seems to work out the problems eventually. It’s after those problems are resolved that a true and deep friendship can blossom. Here’s one of my favorite quotes on the subject by one of my favorite writers, Mark Twain (1835-1910).
“Always obey your parents, when they are present.”
HAPPY FATHERS DAY, POP!
The rainy days continue here in Maine. All the better for our gardens but a little annoying as well. The better-half surprised me yesterday with an adlib Father’s Day celebration. We’d leave the house early and look for a small out of the way place to have breakfast. The only requirement was that the restaurant be small and some where we’d never been before.
This was the best scenery shot of the morning because it rained the entire time we were driving.
After driving along the coast to several small restaurants we were becoming frustrated. In one restaurant there was not only a forty-five minute wait for a table but a half-hour wait to get into the stupid parking lot. We quickly decided that wasn’t the place we were looking for.
Twenty minutes later we cruised into the city of South Portland, just across the harbor from Portland. As we turned a corner what did we stumbled onto but a Mexican restaurant called Taco Trio. The entire town was barely awake and moving but this tiny little place was bustling with customers.
After some discussion we both decided on a breakfast burrito with everything. The order arrived twenty minutes later at our tiny little table with two four pound burritos with everything in them. And I do mean everything!! We had sides of freshly made tomato salsa, a pineapple and cilantro salsa, and enough hot sauce to float a boat. It was the best Father’s Day meal I’ve ever had and I suspect my mouth will still be burning in three more hours.
One last thing. The war between me and all of Mother Nature’s critters has come to an end. Rather than kill as many of them as possible I decided on a more peaceful solution. Thanks to a nearby Lowes and three hours of hard work I was able to fence in my garden frames. It’s been two days now and there’ve been no further middle of the night raids. Here’s a couple of photo’s of the new setup.
For the first time in my life I was able to get the upper hand on Mother Nature. I hope my late father is up there watching. He was never able to win using electric fencing, human hair, guns, and any thing else he could think of.
HAPPY FATHER’S DAY DAD – We finally won one.
Today was all about relaxing. My better-half and I decided to just take the day, go where we please, relax a little, and we did just that. We had a great breakfast at home and then headed for the coast to snap some pictures. As expected traffic was heavier than usual with the influx of tourist beginning to increase. The summer season is almost upon us.
Our first stop was the Portland Head Light which is a light house on a point of land at the entry to Portland harbor. This is a favorite spot for tourists from all over the country if the license plates we saw today were any indication. My luck much be changing because just as we drove past the main entrance someone pulled out and left me the best damn parking spot you can get. We took plenty of pictures, spent some time in the gift shop, and then near the water watching the boats come and go. It’s a very relaxing place and the adjacent park was filled with kids and parents flying kits, throwing Frisbees, and playing ball. It was very nice.
We then left the park and drove through the suburbs of Portland and headed northwest out of the city. We drove at least a hundred miles in a large circle covering a large portion of southern Maine. We stopped to shop in a number of antique shops because I was hot to buy something today. Unfortunately for me my better-half was not. We saw many really cool things but ended up buying nothing at all. I found a working Dictaphone circa 1865 with a number of wax cylinders still intact and workable. It was in beautiful condition and I had a hard time walking away from it. For $150.00 it could have been all mine. It still may be mine. My better-half returns to wok tomorrow which may force me drive back to that shop and make the purchase anyway. Should I or shouldn’t I? I’ll know tomorrow when I get out of bed.
We had a great day together and it gave us a chance to reconnect after a few weeks of her hectic work schedule. We antiqued a little and then stopped along the road to see some lambs and take their pictures. I also got some great shots of my better-half chasing a flock of turkeys through a farmers field trying to snap pictures while running. It was really funny and I’ve got it all on my camera to be used later to embarrass her. Life is good.
We returned home tired but relaxed. She’s back to work tomorrow where the stress will start working on her all over again. Since this was my official Fathers Day celebration I was happy as I could be. Steaks on the grill later, a nice glass of wine or two, and hopefully a restful nights sleep afterwards. If you get my drift.
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