growing a 3rd ball - need a hearing aid?

Dtrigg said:

Oh man!!! :biggrin::biggrin::biggrin:

I found Hal's old thread and had to bump it. I am still laughing after reading those stories.

I have tears rolling down my cheeks...

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Juice said:

I didn't realize how old this thread was. As I'm reading and laughing through it, I come to Len 3.8s post and I grow sad. I suddenly realize how old the post is and how long it has been since we lost a friend.

I can't even explain how odd it is to read his post only to realize that it is not current, and he is no longer with us. Like a ghost...

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queenlives said:

dad passed away two weeks ago today and (at their request) i was telling a few "dad stories" to a close friend earlier this morning and i remembered this post from '05. since the day of this father-son shared moment dad and i had a few more that i may share over time.

dad died in his own bed at home of metastatic lung cancer, very peacefully and in comfort, with his 9 year old companion dog by his side ... just as he told the docs he wanted to when he was diagnosed just a month earlier.

a week or two after his diagnosis we were talking and i said, "pop, you have any major regrets about your life?"

"nope, not a one, hal. i've lived much longer and done much better than i'd ever hoped ... i'm ready."

i'm doing my best to feel the same way @ the end of my journey and hope you are, too (and for a good belly laugh, re-read the first post in this thread

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queenlives said:

sitting in a crowded restaurant in august, my father yells outloud to me, "HEY, DID I TELL YOU I WAS GROWING A 3RD BALL?"

(background)
i'm a 52 yr old guy with a father that lost his wife on his 80th b'day in july. he lives in oregon, i live in silicon valley. pop's a "grapes of wrath okie" - dirt poor family migrated from oklahoma during the dustbowl era, were migrant farm laborers... eventually dad joined the navy in wwII and from that became a welder (actually, a journeyman in 4 trades by the time he retired). i'm a software sales professional. we're a bit different anyway, over the years, dad lost most of his hearing through work. he's on his 3rd hearing aid and it's not going too well.

for the past 6 months i've been traveling to oregon to visit. 100% of visiting time was spent in the house with dad and his wife; then just dad. but on my trip in august, i suggested we get out for a bite of food - maybe that nice chinese buffet he used to like. to my great surprise, he says "sounds great"... and we're off.

so we're in this place about 15 minutes and not talking much (since he can't hear well, he's accustomed to yelling cause he seems to think *i* can't hear well, either when all of a sudden, he says (yelling cause he thinks i'm deaf, too)

"HEY, DID I TELL YOU I WAS GROWING A 3RD BALL?"

i'm telling ya, you could have heard a grain of steamed rice hit each and every plate in the restaurant... people's heads were spinning around to look at us like we were in a scene from the exorcist.

i'm sure i must have shrunk down about 9 inches in my seat. in fact, i tried to bury myself in the stuff on my plate. it didn't work.

"YEAH, I WAS TAKING A SHOWER AND GOD D*MN, I FELT SOMETHING, FELT LIKE A 3RD BALL. YOU EVER DO THAT?"

uh, no sir, never had that happen.

well, as you can imagine, everyone has stopped eating and is leaning over to hear whatever else is gonna be said... i'm not sure why, though, since you could have heard him from cleveland.

"YEAH, SO I WENT TO THE DOCTOR AND HE SAID IT WAS JUST A CYST, NOT A BALL. STRANGE, HUH?"

well, wasn't this a special father and son moment... naturally, i was so embarassed i thought i was going to projectile vomit right there on the spot. as fate would have it, everybody went back to eating their meals ("show's over folks, let's keep moving") and we finished ours and left.

as time's gone on, i've been struck how hilarious this was... both to other people who were watching what was happening and to me, too... i will always remember this tender father/son moment.

i'll also remember to get *my* hearing checked and treated as needed to save my son's from the same fate - or not, just to pay them back

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Speedmaster said:

Thanks for the smile, Hal.

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Yinzer said:

Good story, fun thing to read before bed. Hats off to your dad for good memories and good times.

Did you know:

The first testicular guard, the "Cup," was used in Hockey in 1874 and the first helmet was used in 1928.
That means it only took 50 years for men to realize that their brain is also important.

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