Questions That Make You Smile

Okay, you do the math! High school in 1988 - College in 2001. It took me a while, but I graduated from Indiana University through the school of Icantbelievethistookmethirteenyears-amIsomekindofidiot. Seriously, I did! It's a very obscure field - often overlooked by the elite intelligencia! Of course, after graduation there was the usual chasing down the American dream, the jobs, the family and all the rough spots in between that can bring you to the point of depression. Sound familiar? Well as you know, there are times that make the 80-grit moments of life worth while. Today was one of those days.

We brought the kids to my in-laws pool to enjoy one of the last sunshinny days of summer and my ten-year old decided that he didn't need to go to school. He presented a very compelling argument that he could, in the end, build forts and roof houses for a living, because he was strong and didn't need to use his brain to work. Now normally, I'd let that go. But come on, this was a life lesson gold mine!

I proceeded to remind him of the virtues of hard work and education and how much we love him and want the best for him. I also reminded him that he had helped me roof his grandpa's shop this summer, which was a misserably hot experience for all of us. When I finished, his mother asked if he still wanted to be a roofer, and he said, "No. But I can still build forts. Besides, I don't even understand most of what Daddy just said!"

I had to laugh. And then, I knew I had to write about it, so I said to my wife, "This is gonna make a great blog entry." To which my eight-year old daughter replied with frightened and fully aware eyes, "Where? Where's a blog entry?" She was swinging her arms in the water trying to shoo that darn blog entry away. I said, "It's over there, Anna! The blog entry is by your head!" She screamed and dove in the water.

Talk about good times! It was a moment that I'll cherish forever. But wait! There's more...

When Anna came out of the water, I asked if she really didn't know what a blog entry was. She said, "Of course, I do. It's one of those things you write on the computer." I was stunned and asked, "How did you know that?" She replied, "Everything I know, I've learned from the Disney Channel!" I shot a disouraging glare at my wife and immediately fell into a deep depression. However, I'm sure there will be more sunshinny days ahead. BOOM!