Life Lessons From Dirty Harry
“A man’s got to know his limitations.” No truer line has ever been spoken in a movie. I’ve lived a huge chunk of my life doing crazy things and finding out just what mine are. Before I got married I wouldn’t think twice about changing a job I was bored with to try another, or go on some stupid adventure or road trip on a whim.
If you saw my resume you’d think one of two things. “My, what unique and diverse individual.“ or “That jackass can’t hold a job!” Marriage changes all that, especially marriage and kids. It changes if you want to make a go of it. I’ve known guys that have never changed, but I did.
Every once in a great while I’ll bump into someone from my past. The conversation will eventually come around to, “Remember that time when you,” and I’ll be waving my hands frantically in the air behind my wife’s back and mouthing the word, “NO!” to get him to shut up. It usually doesn’t work and in a private moment later on my wife will say, “If I’d known then what I know now about you, I’d have never…” and then she stops, shakes her head and gives me a sideways glance.
“Well you’re stuck with me honey,” I’ll say, “till death because my side of the family doesn’t believe in divorce.” Secretly I think my wife lives in perpetual fear that I’m going to crack someday and return to wayward ways in some prolonged midlife crisis binge of sin and debauchery. But the truth is I’m happy with what I have. I’m not going anywhere. And my kids are in for a big surprise if they think I’m going to be some clueless Dork of a dad that they can rollover and con while they’re growing up.
