Whenever I went anywhere as a young teenager my dad would make sure I didn't leave the house without handing me a couple of quarters and making sure I put them in my shoe. He said, "No matter where you are tonight, no matter what you do; if you get into a situation where you need someone to come and pick you up, you call me and I will be there. I don't care what time it is or what the circumstance is. I will be there." I walked around with quarters in my shoe for a long time, and it was a constant reminder that no matter what, my dad would come and get me. I never did use the quarters, but it was nice to know they were there should I have needed them.
After graduation I went with a few friends of mine for a fun filled weekend of partying. My family was at the ceremony, and then they left to go back home. I hung out at the school for a little while with my friends, then went back home to change. To my surprise there was an envelope sitting on top of the television that had my name on it. I could tell right away it was my dad's handwriting. I opened up the envelope and found a note with $20.00 inside. It said, "Have a fun night. Love, Dad" It really meant a lot to me because I knew how much $20.00 meant to our family, and to him. It was so sweet that he would sacrifice for me to have some spending money.
My dad used to tease me when I was little that I talked so fast he could hardly understand me. He told me I talked like the man on the Micro Machine commercials. Here's an example for those of you who have no idea what I am talking about:
I remember once we had moved from Las Vegas to Southern California and my dad had to go back to tie up some loose ends. He decided to take me along on the trip. Just me! I was so excited. We left so early in the morning and I didn't get my clothes ready the day before so we were late in starting out. I think I was in second or third grade so I ended up grabbing the closest clothes I could find because I didn't want my dad to change his mind and leave me behind. I realized the next day that I grabbed an old pair of jeans that didn't fit me anymore and so I had to walk around with tight pants on that wouldn't button. I think I read practically every sign from California to Las Vegas and I must have told a thousand stories to my dad during that time. He had to tell me quite a few times to slow down and I'm sure eventually he told me it was time to be quiet. The drive was probably about four or five hours, but that's a long time to be in the car with a little girl spurting out her every last story and dream and hope just in order to keep talking to her dad. To this day I still enjoy talking with him. We have a lot in common and I greatly enjoy his company, though I don't talk nearly as fast anymore. :)
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