Grant Brünner: Bassguy

I’ve been reading the archives of Dad Gone Mad for the past couple of weeks. I’m not really a “Kid person,” but he makes me chuckle quite a bit. Reading his site brings me joy, but it also makes me uncomfortable. I am in the transitional period between being a child, and being a full-fledged, honest-to-god adult. I’m technically an adult in the eyes of our good ol’ U. S. of A., but I still don’t feel like one. I doubt I’ll feel like an adult for many years to come. I could own a home, have a career, volunteer at a shelter, and hold a position in the state senate, but I sincerely doubt I’d feel like much of an adult. Being referred to as “Sir” at the cash register of a Wendy’s is about as close as I’ve come to feeling like an adult.

Another issue that I confront when I read this site is that he reminds me of dumb shit I did when I was a really young kid. As much as I hate to admit it, the thought of embarrassing or disappointing my parents makes me feel awful. I replay stupid memories over and over and think about how terrible I must have made my parents feel. All in all, I was a good kid. I believe that my parents are proud of me. However, when I think about the time that I yelled at my sister when my dad was on an important business call, I feel shamed. When I think about how I once signed my dad up as a community leader after he had publicly stated that he despised it, I recoil. These are very minor things, but they are magnified a thousand times in my mind’s eye. I feel like a heel, and my old man probably doesn’t even remember these occurrences.