That Guy and That Guy II

There are times when you feel like you probably have all of the answers that the world can throw at you. I don’t feel like there are problems, only solutions.

For as long as I can remember I have been instilled with the feeling that I should help people who are in need, no matter who they are. I got that from my Daddy.

That feeling of kind of like a super hero, except there are no super powers or anything like that, but that upbringing and seeing him go out of his way to help people. That is where “That Guy” came from.

Now not everyone knows That Guy. There are those that do. And those people are smiling and chuckling right now. You see That Guy shows up with a visit or a phone call or a tool or pretty much anything short of a nuclear missile if someone needs it.

I think actually it may just be That Guy II, because I think Daddy was the original That Guy for many people.

As a trooper, if someone had a problem and didn’t understand what was happening, they would call Daddy or come by. Or if someone needed some other kind of aid, he was there.

So in time, as he got older and then I got older, I remembered how he acted and if someone needed something, then I have tried to be there.

It’s actually quite amusing because if I were to ever write down all of the things That Guy and That Guy II did for people, it would probably be a funny book. Up until the day he died he was still That Guy for people.

We did not have the traditional relationship that most fathers and sons have.

Growing up he was on the road a lot as a state trooper so he was not there for many things I participated in, but I never really had a problem with that because I knew he was out working, doing the good things, helping people. I was and am still good with that.

But we did get chances to watch ball games on TV together. He did take me hunting and fishing, when we could find the time. We had a strong relationship.

Of course as you get older the relationship changes. As I was getting ready to start high school, Daddy took me to the side and said, “I know you are gonna slip around and drink cold beer….I did it when I was your age, and you are going to do it, too. But if I ever catch you on the road when you do, you better hope they go ahead and put you in jail because that might be the only place you will be safe. And let me tell you one more thing, if I ever catch you doing anything more than a cold beer, I will pull your right arm off and beat you to death with it.”

I believed he would do just that until the day that he died.

One particular time some friends and I had drank a few cold beers and went to the old Junior Food store on the north end of town. We were in the store for maybe 10 minutes, and then gone.

This was before the days of cell phones, but before we got back good, he knew about it and there was a good scolding put on me as well as my friends.

I know in 1989 when one of my friends, John Williamson, was killed in a car wreck, that part of him died a little too because he knew how much my friend meant to me.

We did not always see eye to eye on everything. We had different opinions on pretty much everything. He loved to see who could turn left, the most, the fastest (NASCAR) and I saw that as 3 plus hours that was just wasted. But we all have different likes and differences. We always had John Wayne westerns and sports. I think we watched The Searchers over 100 times. It was our movie I guess you could say. And any time it came on, we would watch it.

I made mistakes in life, still do, but he never used those times to throw me away or turn his back on me. He was always there. Of course he would tell me where I screwed up, but the main thing was the fact that he was always there.

I will miss him very much…especially in the fall when football starts and when baseball is in the World Series. Those were times we would sit and watch games together. He was an Auburn fan and we got to watch the Prayer in Jordan-Hare against Georgia together as well as the Miracle Kick-6 TD against Alabama. I know he would laugh if he knew Nick Saban had been given a raise and contract extension “for losing to Auburn.”

Good bye Daddy. I know the Crappie in heaven are in for a rude awakening now.

Do-overs, missed chances and greatness

Dare to be great! That is something I am sure we all have heard at some point in our lives.

Life can be about as scary as anything. But we are lucky if we have folks who make that journey with us. There are always new people coming and going as we take that trip and we share lots of thoughts, hopes, dreams, laughs and tears along the way.

No matter how happy that person walking past you looks or acts, do we really know what they are feeling? I don’t need to cure cancer to be great. I don’t need to feed a starving village to be great.

All it takes to be great is to be the best I can be and give that person a simple smile and nod as I walk past them. Because that might the kindest gesture they get all day.

I can rejoice in the good things and not dwell on the bad things. Make no mistake, the bad stuff is much easier to hold on to, but it does nothing but drag us down. Mistakes are made by everyone, so move past them. Don’t have regrets.

As kids we played games and there were do-overs. We can have do-overs as adults. Swallow your pride. Sometimes you have to ask for a hand…some help…because there are so many people out there who will be there for you.

No one has to make the journey alone. Buy the ticket and take the ride.

I’m tired of bad news and bad things happening to good people. But that is not going to change.

I refuse to embrace that thought. I know we can make good things happen and I know that we can help those who have bad things happening to them.

Don’t let the fear of life keep you from living.

Listen to your radio and sing at the top of your lungs.

Eat the bacon.

Laugh at the silly stuff.

Cry when you are sad.

Hug your loved one a little tighter.

Scream at the TV to make your team play better.

Wear that shirt that you love.

Jump out of a perfectly good airplane (parachute is a must though).

Take that road trip.

Tell someone you love them.

Be nice.

Put a funny ringtone on your cell phone.

Be the best friend anyone could ask for and you will get one back.

Throw away your hate and forgive.

Stand around a fire pit with friends and have a cold drink.

Do things that will make you happy, but don’t break the law.

But don’t judge someone. You have no idea what they go through every day just to make it from sun-up to sun-down.

Make your own greatness and don't miss the chances that come your way.

Bama fans did not need to root for AU

The games have come and gone. There were winners and there were losers. The doomsday pundits made the prediction that Hell would freeze over before Auburn won a football championship. It snowed in Tuscaloosa the day before the big game.
In the weeks leading up to the National Championship matchup between Auburn and Oregon, there was a huge ground swell of emotion.
Many Tiger fans felt that the Alabama fan base should fall in behind the team from the Plains and root on for consecutive titles for the state.
Lord knows we do need something good from this state considering how we are perceived by the rest of the world.
At one point I agreed with that assessment. But after careful thought and consideration I came to the realization that if Bama fans pulled for an Auburn team they had spent their lives hating, it would just be crazy.
There is a need for rivalry in our world of sports. We must have a team we love and that team must have a bitter enemy. It is human nature.
Last year the Auburn fan base threw more Hook’em Horn signs than all the combined gang signs ever seen by the Bloods and Crips.
There was nothing wrong, whatsoever, for Tide fans to wear Oregon colors and hope the Ducks would win Monday night.
Facebook was plastered with the division of fans who had Auburn artwork as well as Bama fans with Oregon colors. Watching the status updates was as amusing as anything I have seen in a long time.
At around 11:20-something p.m. Auburn had won their first title since 1957 and just their second ever.
Being the great fans they are, Bama fans immediately threw out the whole 13 title propaganda. (In fact they only have 11 since the NCAA no longer recognizes the 1934 and 1941 titles. Only Minnesota is recognized now.)
Still, it is highly doubtful that Auburn will win nine more before the Crimson Tide wins another. In fact, the boys from Tuscaloosa could likely win it all next year and give this state something never done before, three consecutive national champions.
I hope the day never comes where our society loses that ferventness in rooting for your team and against the rival.
That will be the day they can lay me in the ground and have slow walking and sad singing on my hillside because that would mean there is no longer any need for sports in our world.
I do wish some of the lifelong Auburn fans could have been around to see the Tigers win a title, like Harvey Jackson.
But I‘m pretty sure he knew and he was already wearing his Auburn shirt.
That’s all folks.....