Daddy-o

Regular readers of this blog may notice that I rarely post photos of myself. I think I can count the number on one hand, actually: my first wedding here, and my second wedding here. Well, my little blogsters...I'm going to take that running total up a couple notches today in honor of Father's Day.

This is my all-time favorite photo of me and my dad:

My dad with his 6-string Kamaka ukulele, me with my smaller 4-string (and Bert & Ernie denim shorts).

My love of music comes from my dad and I can remember many jam sessions in my childhood with me on the uke or piano and my dad sitting beside me strumming along. He always said that he wished he could read music, but the truth is he didn't need to. He played everything by ear...brilliantly. His rendition of Stars and Stripes Forever was always a crowd pleaser and when he taught me how to play it, we took our act on the road. Yes, back in the day we were the headlining act during a family vacation as we toured the east coast. We played every inn, motel, and hotel that we stayed at and sometimes performed for the rest of our little tour group in our Greyhound bus.

Like a snake charmer with his trusty flute, I had two songs in my arsenal that would always get my dad's attention. On the ukulele, it was Frank Sinatra's "My Way," and on the piano, it was Debby Boone's "You Light Up My Life." My dad would hear me playing those songs, stop whatever he was doing, and say, "Wait, wait, wait..." Next thing I know, he'd be disappearing into his bedroom to fetch his ukulele. He tuned his ukulele while walking back to the living room, ready to give his best ol' blue eyes impersonation. Shockingly, Frank Sinatra and Debby Boone weren't that popular among kids my age, but I knew my dad loved them. I played those songs for him.

Fast forward 25 years or so and we come to my second most favorite photo of me and my dad. Now, I debated long and hard whether to actually post this photo (you'll see why), but I guess I'm just going all in.

In 2004, we took a family trip to Japan. My oldest brother was the tour guide, mapping out the cities we'd be visiting, arranging our lodging, even noting the trains we would catch (down the to minute!) in each leg of our travels. It was such a treat to be going on a trip that I didn't have to organize myself! But the planner in me couldn't help but research some fun things to do along the way. For our stay in Kyoto, I read about a place in Gion that you could dress up as a maiko (an appretice geisha) in full make-up and kimono. Seemed like a fun, touristy thing to do so my family indulged me as we added this to our itinerary.

We found the Gion studio with no trouble at all, but quickly realized that we were the only English-speaking people there. No other wide-eyed tourists sitting in the waiting room, just us. I hesitated for a moment and asked my brother if he wanted to dress up, too. Yeah, he turned me down even before I finished asking the question. But then my dad piped in and said, "Maybe I'll do it!" Really? My dad wanted to play dress up with me in Japan? Then we all looked over at my mom and she said, "No way! Not me!" So, it was just me and my dad on our way to the back room where all the magic happened.

We were dressed in separate rooms and saw each other for the first time just moments before the photographer started snapping away. Me, the shy maiko, and my dad, the smiling samurai. I love that my dad was game for this. I love that for as much as my dad likes his simple pleasures and daily routines, he can surprise you with a youthful, silly, zest for life. And I think I've inherited that from him, too.

So, there you go, a 2-for-1 Father's Day pictorial post. Only for you, Dad. Happy Father's Day.