Saturday 9: The Men in My Little Girl's Life

Hey there, hi there, ho there! I hope you're all having outstanding day. I am just now deciding whether I want to have a day, as the three of us here (Hubs, Daughter, and I) were up past 0500 hours this morning and are all beyond worn out.

      Have you all had an irrational amount of rain so far this Gardening/Summertime/Whatever you want to call it Season? Ugh, the drenching we have taken! Rob and I have been laying out seed since mid-late April, and for some of them, we still are because of fun calendar math. Working in the garden has been, honestly, exhilarating for me, but because I have multiple chronic health conditions, I pay a pretty penny in the form of pain and fatigue. But especially this June, we're getting hours-long deluge after hours-long deluge. 

        Last night at two in the morning (so yes, today), I was obsessing about it and chatting with Google AI for next steps. When we were discussing carrots and our runaway foliage, "she" (I call "her" my Google Girl) said I needed to make one of them our sacrificial lamb and pull it, expecting a tiny, possibly forked root. Which is what there was, except forked four ways. And she said to go out immediately and harvest all the radishes, no matter what. So there I was, while Rob was picking up Chloë from her job, in all my disabled glory, putting on my shoes, gloves, harvesting apron, and headlamp, and out there picking all the radishes. Ay. Google Girl said that was actually a very impressive yield, and then I felt so proud. Hee.

 Anyway, that's enough about my intertwined gardening/Google Girl life. If you decide to play along this weekend (a late bloomer is still a bloomer - I was going to say "latercomer," but that is much more problematic), make sure you link up here.

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Saturday 9: The Men in My Little Girl's Life (1965)
 
 Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.

Chosen for Father's Day.

1) In this song, a father shares the story of his daughter's life through first the boys, then the men, she brought home. The first is Rod, a little kid who wants to play in the backyard. Who were your playmates when you were young? Did you find it more fun to have them over to your home, or to go to theirs?

When I was little little? I mostly played with my sibling and "U," a lifelong friend and our babysitter's daughter. I liked a boy named Matthew Buffalo and thought about him long after we moved from outside NYC to outside Syracuse, when I was SIX! One time, at five, I'd hopped off the bus early at his stop, without telling anyone. My poor mother was frantic. I learned new things that day.

2) Then his daughter asked if Lee could carry her books on the walk to/from school. During your junior high years, how did you travel to school (bus, bicycle, car pool, shoe leather)?

What is a shoe leather? I am going to have to look that up after this. I always rode the bus, to all my schools. Wait, is that just a fancy way of saying one walked? Ha, I caught on that that was missing from your list, and I refuse to backspace.

 

3) Throughout this song, the father recalls that his daughter alternately called him "Daddy," "Dad," "Popsie," "Pop" and "Father." How did/do you address your father?

I call my father only "Dad" now and don't wish to think about that as a youngster, but I call my husband all sorts of fun and nonsense, and all the "dad" words, even though all the kids are no longer children.

 

4) The song ends with the daughter asking her father to babysit. When did you last look after someone else's child?

Oh, gosh, it's been a minute! Never here in Maryland, and we've been here for the whole plague. Never in Idaho, and we were there since the beginning of the first dRumpf administration. Maybe in Florida, oh yes, definitely there. My friend V asked me if I would take her oldest child into our homeschool, too, and I'm a never-no-er, so that happened. I also watched her while Mum had a baby. I couldn't do it now. Health issues are too far gone.

 

5) This record was a Top 10 hit in the US and it made the Top 20 in Canada. Much of its success was attributed to Mike Douglas' TV popularity. From 1965 to 1981, he hosted a daytime talk show. Do you watch much daytime TV?

I really don't watch any. We have a Roku TV, and that keeps me from watching a lot of the progamming I'd want to see, which is the news these days, let's face it! I mean, we have Amazon Prime and Netflix and I think Paramount Plus and some others but I'm kind of obsessed with my garden right now, so it's a major afterthought.

 

6) Mike Douglas was a father himself. He had three daughters, including twins. Are there twins in your family?

Ouchhhh. Yes. That's painful right now. I had identical twin boys, Robby & Jack, back in March 2003. The three of us had developed a severe case of Twin-Twin Transfusion Syndrome during labor & delivery itself. Robby, therefore, our "recipient twin," lived for only three days. We had Jack, our "donor twin," for 21 wonderful years but lost him to suicide in 2024. 

There are more sets of twins, both fraternal and identical, on my husband's side.

Now about Father's Day ... 

 

7) Retail chains like O'Reilly Auto Parts, Auto Zone and Jiffy Lube are all promoting gift cards and car-related gifts for Father's Day. If you got a gift card from one of those stores, how would you upgrade your ride?

Well, my 2021 Honda Odyssey is still pretty much in mint condition, so I would definitely give this to Rob for his 2013 Toyota Tacoma. I don't know what he'd do. You probably can't put your air conditioning on a gift card, right? Heh.

 

8) Dick's Sporting Goods also enjoys a spike in gift card sales around Father's Day. Have you more recently given or received a gift card?

It's been a long while since I've given a gift card, I think. Other than all the gift cards that I'm able to get with all the rewards & receipt apps I use, I haven't received other gift cards, I don't think. Don't get me wrong, I appreciate them! I usually redeem them for Amazon or an e-visa, e-mastercard.

9) In days gone by, ties were the #1 Father's Day gift. But as today's workplace has become more casual, fragrance has taken over the top spot. Dove Men+Care offers gift sets with shampoo/conditioner, body wash and antiperspirant. Think about your shower routine. Are your shampoo, body wash and antiperspirant all the same brand or the same scent?

No, not at all. I lost my sense of smell, and largely taste, too, since well before COVID-19. I believe it happened as we were gaining altitude from Miami to Boise. My left ear didn't make the trip, either. Anyway, so, IF I am able to smell anything, it generally doesn't last more than a second or two. But most of what I use is odorless. I visit a lot of doctors' offices with sensitive patients, and they request no fragrances. I would be one of them if I could smell!

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Y'all be good out there, okay? Check on each other and make sure you're each in a good headspace. Spread around the #988 number if someone is not, for texting, messaging, or calling an expert who can help. And you can always come to me; I will listen no matter what it is. Take care.

                                                                                    xoxo M.