WHO'S YOUR DADDY?

I’m at an age where very little surprises me. Don’t get me wrong. I still find the world a magical place and I’m not jaded in the slightest. It’s just that when you get past 50, you’ve pretty much seen it all, done it all and heard it all. Until today, that is.

“My dad’s a bank robber,” a new friend tells me.

“For real?” I ask.  Then I try to remember how our conversation turned to talking about our fathers. That's what happens when you’re 50.  Don’t laugh, it will happen to you too!

“Yes, look it up.  The United Bank of California-Laguna Niguel in 1972. My dad is Charles Mulligan. There was even an episode of Masterminds done about the heist. You can find it on YouTube.”

I think back to elementary school when the teacher used to have us go around the room and say what our dads did for a living.  Remember, I’m older.  Most of the moms back then stayed at home. Kids usually had dads who were policemen, electricians, lawyers, doctors or some other normal occupations.  Never once did I hear bank robber. Ever. 

“Technically, he’s a bank burglar, not a robber,” my friend says, pulling me back to the conversation.

“There’s a difference?” I ask.

“Yes, a burglar breaks in when there’s nobody in the bank.  A robber usually storms the bank during business hours, usually with a weapon and a threat of violence.”

“Who knew?” 

I wonder what might happen today in a classroom if a student revealed that her father was a bank robber.  ‘COOL’ is the response I mostly think of.  My, how times have changed.