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FROM THE EDITOR
He’s got
so many skills that give him all kinds of thrills (Original lyrics by Dr. Hook. Words changed slightly by the editor. This song is included because one day I was telling Dad that I always thought of him when I heard a Dr. Hook song. He emailed me back the original verse from Dr. Hook and I knew right away that it would be perfect to use at the beginning of this magazine.) This project was conceived in September of 2004. Dad had just had his 59th birthday and I had recently begun a new hobby ... digital scrapbooking ... and I thought a book with some important events from Dad’s life would be a cool present for his 60th birthday. I knew that Dad would like it because he is even more “into” old pictures and family stuff than I am if that is possible. The trick was how to get the information that I needed from Dad while keeping it a secret from him. I had no choice but to s-t-r-e-t-c-h the truth just a little. I asked Dad if he could gather up some old stuff from his life because I wanted to make some scrapbook pages so that my kids and future generations would know a little about him. He was very happy to help me out with this and quickly started digging through his attic and garage and sending me stuff. The problem was that most of what he first started sending was not about him but more about people who were important in his life. I had to creatively guide him onto the path I wanted. Then over the next several months, I would send him emails and ask him questions about his life. I couldn’t send too many at once because I didn’t want him to know anything was going on. In about December, I started to feel bad because Dad was sending me all of this stuff and as far as he knew, I wasn’t creating any scrapbook pages with it. So every once in a while I would send him a page with some of the information he had sent that I wasn’t going to use in this book. What an elaborate plan! Somewhere along the way, this project took on a life of its own. I decided that instead of just a scrapbook album, it needed to be a magazine. Then I thought it would be neat if it had 60 pages (it ended up with 100). Then it became obvious that every magazine needs a few interviews so I had to dig up old friends and relatives from six decades! By the time I decided on everything I wanted to include, I was running out of time! One of Dad’s favorite singers explains it best: “But there never seems to be enough time to do the things you want to do, once you find them.” (From Jim Croce’s 1972 hit song “Time In A Bottle.”) I initially thought this would just be a fun project that would tell a few of the highlights of Dad’s life. But as it turned out, I learned more about Dad than I ever thought I would know. And because of this, it is just as much a present to myself as it is a gift to him. I look forward to the day I can fly up to Ohio and give this to him in person. Out of all of this, the main thing I want Dad to know is that although I did not live with him for most of my life, he has truly been a great influence on me. I hope he knows just how much I love him. I also wanted to thank all of the people who helped me with this project. Everyone I contacted was very willing to help me. But there are four people without whom I would not have been able to do it. Kim Yonkers: Kim is Dad’s best friend and has been helping me from the beginning. I can see why Dad likes him so much. He’s a wonderful man and I now count him as one of my friends. Gloria Eastman: My stepmom Gloria has been a huge help getting this whole project together and keeping it a secret from Dad. Rilla Allen: My mom helped me more than you can imagine. She spent countless hours searching for old friends when I wouldn’t have known where to start. Cheryl Diener: I turned to Aunt Cherie for answers to many questions and she always had the answer. Happy birthday Dad! May all your wishes come true. I love you. ~Robyn |