My dad passed away a little over a year ago. This morning I'm drinking my coffee and having a smoke and just thinking about my dad. I was thinking
about all the things he did in his life. Let me tell you, there is no way I could ever be the guy he really was. It would be impossible.
These are just some of the things that this man got to experience.
At the age of 16 he was offered a pro baseball contract with the Pittsburgh Pirates, but he couldn't accept it because he was going into the seminary
to become a Catholic Priest.
He went to the seminary and had to many questions the church couldn't answer. So he left and moved to the city and graduated from a public high school
and managed to receive a college scholarship for singing in chorus!! And that man could not sing for sh!t. Lol!
But my dad had met my mom in high school and they decided to get married and he joined the U.S. Air Force.
While in the Air Force, he was stationed at both Cape Canaveral and Holoman AFB. There he was a fuel technician and he would fuel the Atlas Rockets.
But the cool thing about it was he got to have coffee with Astronauts every day!!
He also would steal fruit from Ham the astronaut chimp. He just felt jipped that the monkey ate better fruits than him. He said they were giant apples
and bananas. He also said that once they put a female chimp with Ham, and Ham straight up ripped the arm off the female chimp and killed it. Crazy
huh?
So my dad served and just missed Viet Nam.
He came back to the city and became a fire fighter/paramedic. While doing that job he saved countless lives and a cat. He actually gave the cat CPR
and Mouth to mouth! He even delivered a few babies. One on a toilet and another on a water bed.
While being a fire fighter, he managed to go back to university and obtain a 4 year degree in 3 years. It was in Public Relations.
My dad was all about learning and reading. He had so many certifications in so many things.
Back in 1998, I was wanting to further my forensics education by attending a death investigators educational corse to obtain a certificate in death
investigations.
I told my dad about it. He encouraged me to attend. So I did. I got the certificate. My dad was proud.
Years later, I was looking through a binder that had his diplomas and certifications. While fanning through it. I came across HIS death investigator
certification from 1976!
He never even told me he been there and done that. He wasn't one to brag I guess. Lol.
That's just a nibble a fraction of what this man did in his life.
And if only I could be a fraction of what my dad was.
Just wanted to share some wild stories about my dad.
edit on 29-8-2015 by galaga because: (no reason given)