Christmas trees Florida-style: Shopping in swim trunks, but sticking with a live tree

December 22, 2020

Moving to Florida has required many adjustments in our lives and traditions. This year, the pandemic has walked all over family plans. My wife’s family takes an annual trek to a different part of the country, and spends 7 days together under the same roof. Not this year. Daughter is excited about Christmas, but that … More Christmas trees Florida-style: Shopping in swim trunks, but sticking with a live tree

There are older parents who bear a painful burden, but step up to stand in the light

August 6, 2020

There is another type of Older Dad, Younger Child in our midst: Fathers who are raising their children’s children. Many causes create the situation: imprisonment, inability to provide care, and in the saddest cases, due to the death of a child. First, I have seen that losing a child is one of the most devastating … More There are older parents who bear a painful burden, but step up to stand in the light

Suffering social life: Teens need to see each other and get around, but parental taxi service piles up the miles

July 19, 2020

Mobility is an important issue at age 13, especially when all of your friends live between 20 and 1,000-plus miles away. Normally, teens can do most of their feeding at the friendship trough during school, with the occasional weekend sleepover. These are not normal times (pardon my understatement). This pandemic has a ripple effect in … More Suffering social life: Teens need to see each other and get around, but parental taxi service piles up the miles

Nobody wants visitors from Florida: Covid-19 means roadblocks at the border

July 6, 2020

Being 13 years old is a full-time struggle. It’s tough to find friends — 3 schools in 3 years, and a 1,000-mile move. She’s met a few friends since moving to Florida; the 6th-grade friends from a different school have faded. Two friends she made this past year are still in the picture, but it’s … More Nobody wants visitors from Florida: Covid-19 means roadblocks at the border

When did this change? She couldn’t wait to get braces — but the price changed, too

June 10, 2020

When I was 13, getting braces was a drudgery no child would willingly anticipate or take on. They were ugly, they made you look different — “Hey metal mouth,” and “Is that railroad tracks in your mouth?” We’ve known for several years that Daughter would eventually need braces. Her teeth took on a life of … More When did this change? She couldn’t wait to get braces — but the price changed, too

Facebook flashback photos take us back in time — but didn’t predict the future

May 12, 2020

If you have Facebook, it’s likely you get those flashback pictures — “10 years ago” and so on and so forth. It’s supposed to be a feelgood kind of thing. It digs deeper into your gut when a child is involved. Over the past couple of weeks, I’ve received several of those Facebook flashback moments. … More Facebook flashback photos take us back in time — but didn’t predict the future

The 7th Grade Blues, When It Just Didn’t Add Up (for the first time)

October 17, 2019

It can be a rough tumble from top of the heap to just another face in the crowd. It’s a lesson Daughter and I have both experienced — actually, she’s experiencing it now. Many years ago, I yawned my way through the first six grades of what was then elementary school. Interesting aside: In these … More The 7th Grade Blues, When It Just Didn’t Add Up (for the first time)

Music echoes through time — but now I hear dead people

April 23, 2019

Breakfast at Tiffany’s, and bottles of bubbles … During our more-than 2000-mile trip, that Arianna Grande pop hit was on some sort of radio perpetual motion machine, playing in every state, every county — occasionally interrupted by a song from a performer named Post Malone. Listening to these stations pleased Daughter immensely, especially when she … More Music echoes through time — but now I hear dead people