On the Subject of my Heredity

Today I had a SHOCKING discovery:  My father is a redneck!!!!  Lo, all these many years, I thought he was simply born in a small country Texas town, and, realizing he was a misfit, rose above the dirt backroads to become a respected US Gov't Lawyer (yes, lawyers can be respected, sometimes), living in the Big City of Fort Worth with his intelligent, beautiful Junior League wife (she was the daughter of a small town farmer... hmmmm....).  I was sooooo wrong!

I received an email today from DOD (dear ol' Dad), and in reply he shared some details from his childhood most alarming: skunk spraying, cow milking, hog raising, chicken feeding, coon hunting (complete with coon hounds), FFA membership,... oh, the list goes on!!!!

Now, I'd heard the hog raising stories, and the FFA membership, but never with the amount of pride echoing in his voice, the nostalgic tears brimming in his eyes, no doubt!  I thought he went to the ballet/symphony/theatre because he loved it - no, it's all a sham!!!!!!!  He's a redneck who after 75 years has steadfastly REFUSED TO BUY A FOREIGN CAR (except a few years with a lemon Mercedes for Mom, which made up his mind for all eternity - so I thought - that any motor vehicle conceptualized on another continent was evil and probably made by the Taliban)  NOW DRIVES A BRIGHT YELLOW NISSAN XTERRA!!!!!!  

THIS IS NOT THE FATHER WHO RAISED ME!  APPARENTLY , AGE HAS BROUGHT SENILITY AND IT ISN'T GOING TO BE PRETTY!!!!!!!!!

He's spiraled quickly, as the car was a recent purchase.  Prior to, he's drivena firetruck red Ford with fondness and pride.  Where was this man when I was growing up?  The Nana wants a Lexus, and he said he would rather BUY HER A TOYOTA!!!!  It's like comparing Pink Lady apples with Braeburn - what's the difference!!!!! They're Both apples!!!!

I'm definitely going to need that therapy now - he is no longer the stubborn opinionated man he once was!  He's willing to yield a little, maybe a lot, and venture into the world of foreign vehicles - this from the man who ridiculed me when I bought a little Honda sports coupe years ago (oh, long since traded in for the Sterling transportation choice of all mothers, the Minivan!).  I could have used a little flexability YEARS ago when I wanted to apply to more than one college (not everyone Wants to go to Baylor).  But that's in the past, this is the future.

And these are uncharted waters, the open road, the high seas!  Did I mention that I get car and seasick?