KEEPING PUPPIES IN THE BOX

With all of the nonsense going on in the world, I was tempted to pull out the political cap and bore everyone with my latest rants about the hypocrisy that is smothering America today, the way working to capacity steel mills used to blanket the Cleveland Skyline that I never saw when I lived there in the late 70's.

I could wax poetic about the indignant outrage expressed by "many" who find it offensive that people are "bussed in" to protest town hall meetings. The same "many" who never complained when Blacks were "bussed into" Washington in the 60's to fight for their civil rights. The same "many" who climbed into their psychedelically colored VW minivans and bussed themselves cross country to protest the Vietnam War. But I won't, even though I just did...cuz it's.....entertaining in a bizarre and humorous kinda way.

I could wax poetic about even more indignant outrage expressed by "many" over the name calling and hurled epithets and unruly behavior at these town hall meetings, on blogs, and especially on Fox News. The same "many" who are either too young or too dementiaed to remember the more deadly unruly behavior that occured in the Race Riots of the 60's and 70's, or the week long violence and bloodletting that occurred at the Convention Of Our Current Ruling Party in 1968. And are we that stoned or stupid that we forget all the nasty names and epithets that were foisted upon Bush and Cheney over the previous 8 years? (Repeat after me... Keith Olbermann). But I won't, even though I just did....cuz it's......entertaining in a bizarre and humorous kinda way.

NOPE.....Not gonna go there today (okay, maybe I did...call me a liar....just not a hypocrite).
I'm gonna rant about something completely different.

Parenting.
Life's most important job.

(I consider it 2nd in degree of difficulty to, but not much different than, Keeping Puppies In The Box)

The job that we receive no remuneration for, fill out no applications for, receive no formal education or training for, get no vacations from, no sick days, the job that features a Grass Roots Retirement Program, i.e. we're officially retired when we can see the roots while lying on our back, the job that is nevertheless the most important task given to us by The Boss.

Why parenting?
Cuz I just got a reminder that, no matter how chronologically distanced our kids are from Pampers, no matter how wise and mature and self-sufficient they are, no matter how many times you pat yourself on the back for a job well done, you still gotta answer the claxon bell from time to time and help fend off a kamikaze attack.

In a nutshell....
My own Princess Grace, my personal apple of Daddy's eye, is getting married in October.
It will be an outstanding and wonderful event.
The event that all young girls (and proud Dad's) dream of.
An event that I have been distancing myself from the logistics of as much as I can, for the sake of peace and sanity for all involved (okay, especially for MY sanity..cuz my momma din't raise no foo).
But despite the best intentions, especially during events as mind numbing and hectic and crazy as weddings.....brides can get a little....uh....how can I say this nicely......carried away?
Once again, just when you think you are done being a parent, Nature (Human or Mother, take your pick) reminds you that.....

"Heh Heh......gotcha again...step up big fella."

So, "Daddy" had to temporarily morph back to "Father" and put on the Darth Vader Helmet.
And now we've got an intergalactic war on our hands.

But it's good....it's all good....cuz....like everything else in the stormy universe.....this too shall pass..

And I'll gratefully keep this job called parent.....it's a great job.....best job I ever had....

Cuz it's....entertaining in a bizarre and humorous kinda way.