Dad Post #230

I said to Megan today, "I remember the day you were born, Baby. I loved you so much that day, and every day since." Megan ignored me. She was playing 'Crossy Road.' Her device is more important than her dad. Crossy Road, of course, is a rip-off of 'Frogger,' which was invented during my childhood, thank you very much. Crossy Road my ass!

We're in Florida for spring break. It snowed half a foot the day we left Chicago. Haha! The Cubs play next week. I love watching baseball at Wrigley in my winter coat and seeing my breath and the players in Under Armor hoods and masks and extra layers so they don't freeze to death. The postseason at Wrigley is always cold, too :)

This evening, M 'n' m and I attended a cocktail party in Florida. We're staying with Grandma Barb and Papa Mike, but Great-Grandma Bev has a place here, also. We sat and sipped drinks with Grandma Bev and her friends. Michael is a 7-Up guy; Megan likes juice. The partiers were all about seven decades older than M 'n' m. I told the kids, "Learn what you can from these folks, they don't make 'em like they used to." I thought for a second and added, "Especially the men, Michael; they definitely don't make men like they used to." Depending on interpretation, I sounded like a chauvinist, a feminist, or a dumbass, but I meant it with deep respect, for men and women. Michael didn't really hear me anyway, but at least he wasn't playing Crossy Road. My son will never be drafted, hopefully, and endure something like D-Day, or the invasion of Germany, like my grandpa who fought for General Patton. Michael probably won't work in a coal mine and die from black lung, like my great-grandpa. As a young man, the same great-grandpa lost his wife following complications during simple surgery, which meant my grandpa lost his mom when he was only Michael's age. Tough breaks. I wonder if M 'n' m can even fathom life without cell phones and the internet. Because it actually happened! No shit! Not long ago, people had no air conditioning, remote controls, automatic transmissions, or vaccinations. They survived without microwaveable meals (that are so preserved, they are essentially immortal). But our ancestors had stillness, hard work, healthier food, and unridiculous media. It's good to rub shoulders with people who are many thousands of days older than we are.