Daddy (52 Ancestors)

     Ok, so I missed week one of 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge.  But! I figured that I'd do this based on Ahnentafel numbers.  Thus, my week one is the "About Valerie" tab.  Whew... I'm covered.

     So, the #2 person on my Ahnentafel report is my dad.  I have to confess, we got a bit grumpy with each other today.  He was trying to fix my toilet and the part I'd purchased was defective.  His grumpiness lead to my grumpiness... it happens.  But the happy times certainly outweigh the grumpy times.

     My dad was raised in an area outside of Atlanta that was rural, turning suburban.  His family (seven kids!) had a well for water, but by the time he was born they had indoor plumbing.  His parents, who had been born into rural farming families, believed in hard work.  Dad started working for his father's sanitation company when he was 13 and has held numerous jobs in construction and manufacturing since then.  Many times, we've been driving and he'll say, "I helped widen this road."  Sometimes he has some pretty interesting stories about the companies he worked for and the stuff they got away with back when.

     Some of my favorite memories when I was a kid come from spending time with my dad.  He took us to the drag races a few times and I remember the noise and wearing ear plugs.  My sister and I got pink t-shirts that we're wearing in a few random photos.

     He took us fishing one time.  I don't remember where, and I can only guess that we were about 10 years old (8? 12?).  I remember stopping to buy worms and standing on the bank of the lake and casting off.  I managed to catch two tiny fish and we ate snickers bars.

     Dad is also the family chef.  He will take a recipe from the newspaper or a evan a pre-packed meal and will make it his own.  It took me a while to understand why the Hamburger Helper on tv looked so different (and very boring!) than the Hamburger Helper we ate.  He's also willing to take out an ingredient he prefers for my more picky palate.

     I love my dad and I'm glad that he is my dad.  We might have our moments, but as I said, the happy outweighs the grumpy.