Reply #62: A little of both [View All]

[fudge stripe cookays]

Came from a Chicago family of 9 kids, didn't finish high school. He ended up getting his GED and joining the Air Force.

He was in for 20-something years. And he was a big guy-- 6'4", 200-something pounds. But I was such a daddy's girl. When I was little, he was stationed in the Philippines for a year and a half, and when he came back, he couldn't even go to the bathroom without me wanting to be right there. He'd walk around the house with me clinging to his leg.

He was an avid judo sensei-- had his own dojo on base at Clark AFB, but he was also sensitive. He was an amazing artist and also played the guitar. I loved sitting on the velvet in his guitar case when I was little and listen to him teach himself to play "What Do You Do With a Drunken Sailor." And I'd curl up next to him on the couch and watch TV a lot.

Unfortunately, dad was a smoker. Yesterday (April Fools) was the 24th anniversary of his death. April Fools has always been a sucky day for me. His death completely fractured my family. My brother no longer speaks to my mother or myself, and my mom and I have a screwed up relationship too.

But I found someone amazingly like my dad. Dark hair, pretty eyes, a musician, and an artist. And I've always been drawn to that type.