teenage wasteland

this was my dad.
i need everyone to look at this pic because ...it is badass.

this week for obvious reasons, and every really, i've thought about my dad. i've also met a few new people this week, and in two of those conversations by chance, it came up that i lost my father at an early age. it really sucks, because i sure do miss him, and he was just the best. i could go on with a million stories about my family here, and someday, hopefully will, because what are blogs but musings and remembrances? but this time, this time, i see this picture of him now, a much younger person that i am currently, and i'm able to see him as something else. old pictures force you to remember that the person is something else than what you know - that they had a whole different life without you - and if you look at that right, it's the coolest thing. my dad had no idea who i was here, or that i'd ever be.

and, as i look at this kid and think of what a badass he was, i sure wish i could've known him as an adult. i mean, a place where we were both adults... because anything that was cool before would be a million times cooler. i think we were pretty good pals for a teenager and a parent, but just as i've grown to know my mom differently as a woman (the coolest), i wish i could've known my dad more as a friend rather than a guardian. you know, you're stupid when you're a teenager. you just are. you can't seperate the person who grounds you from the person that flew in the air force, or was almost a priest, or got a zillion ladies.

my dad was super smart and fun and hardworking and kind and full of italian rage, which only rarely came out on me. pretty much, i was daddy's little g. i miss him. so hey, those of you with parents out there? trust me on this one. get to know them as much as you can. because likelihood is high that they're worth knowing and are way cooler than you let them be before.