Crawl home last night at 8:00 to an empty house. Sick. Tired. COLD. Just me and the cats. Scarf delightful pizza, a beer, settle in with some whiskey and Northern Exposure on DVD.
One of the coolest shows ever.
Theme song ends with a drum riff that ends precisely. My mind flashes back to Craig. He used to lie across my lap and I would drum the beat on his back, try to time it to end perfectly with the the TV. Sometimes I did, sometimes I didn't, but it was a cool ritual we had. Yeah, Dad you nailed it. Dad, you blew it. Very fond memory.
Craig was born on October 23, 1983 and immediately started messing with our heads. He was quite premature with complications and they took him away right off the bat to tend to him properly. He was in the hospital for quite a while and we were worried sick. Tough time for us. But he survived it and so did we.
If he didn't feel the intensity of his mother's love naturally upon birth, she demonstrated it to him the day we took him home. It had been pre-arranged, but when we called they said Dr. Feelgood was off that day and we would have to wait. Carol said BULLSHIT, we are coming right now and my baby better be ready. And we did exactly that. I cowered behind her skirt hoping not to get arrested as we bombed into that hospital and took our kid home. Awesome.
Since then we have watched him grow up. He always had a great sense of humor, always laughing and making others laugh, always easy going, except for his socks. Had to be put on precisely or he would go nuts. Carol would have to plan three hours in advance to get him out of the house. Wonder if that's Karen's job now.
As a teen he followed in his Daddy's footsteps; liked to party. Which ironically caused me a lot of worry. I was exactly the same way as a kid (still am now) and yet knowing he was doing it worried me. But he survived it and and so did we.
He still parties, but I suspect he is a lot smarter than I ever was. No drinking and driving. Drinking and driving was a sport to me. Sometimes I think the best things he has learned from me are the things NOT to do. That's OK.
First year of college we gave him a checking account and checkbook and he promptly demonstrated an inability to differentiate between a positive balance and a negative balance. Got a little crazy but he figured it out. Now he pays his bills promptly and actually has a savings account. Amazing. By the way, he graduated with a dual major. I am very proud of that. The only thing I graduated with was a hangover.
He got into the restaurant/bar business and has had jobs that he hated and jobs that he liked but he always worked his ass off and is now in a cool place where he is happy. He is now strictly a bartender, no bar-backing, no cooking. This is a job that fits him perfectly. He has the perfect personality to tend bar, people love to laugh with him and enjoy his unique insanity. He may become the greatest bartender that ever lived. No bias there.
But he ain't done. There is a restlessness there. Because he wants to improve his life. And he will. He has plenty of time to figure things out.
He and I used to drive the same car. Sort of. Pontiac Sunfire. Except his had a sunroof and a CD player, mine had the Fred Flinstone propulsive hole in the floor. Craig has recently moved on to a Dodge Charger. A big, black beautiful beast. I love it and so does he. The day he registered it, he had backed it into the yard. When I pulled into the driveway to check out his new baby I almost backed out. The damn thing was intimidating. Maybe some day he will pass it down to me when he moves up to his tricked out Mercedes two seater.
He took up golf this year and in typical "Craig the athlete" style attacked it vigorously. My spies tell me he kicks ass already.
And there is Karen. A magnificent lady with whom he is sharing his life and who is sharing her life with him. In Rocky, when Paulie asks Rocky what the attraction is to Adrian, Rocky says she fills gaps. "She's got gaps, I got gaps, we fill gaps." That probably describes lots of relationships, but I don't see that with C&K. They seem to be complimentary personalities that mesh beautifully. They were meant to be together, and that is a rare and beautiful thing.
I collapsed into my recliner to get some peace with Northern Exposure and ended up reflecting upon my son. I love him deeply. I am grateful to be able to laugh with him, talk with him and learn from him.
Just know that he is a funny, easy going, hard working, insane, loving guy who is preparing to conquer the world.
But don't take my word for it. Go to The Lab 'N Lager in Keene. Order a drink from him. Talk to him, soak up his personality, talk to his friends. You will dig him.
And make sure you tip him well.
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