My father was never much of a drinker. In fact, unless we had company coming we never usually even had alcohol in the house. But during the summertime when we would get word that the aunts, uncles, and grandparents were going to be making their annual pilgrimage down from Cohoes, NY to visit us, my father would go out to buy a case of beer. Company would come, the beer would be consumed, and the case of empties would be brought downstairs. No one ever seemed to get around to taking them back from whence they came, and so over the years, one case at a time, they slowly piled up in the cellar. It just so happened, during those years, that as the bottle collection grew, so, too, was I growing. Growing from infant to toddler, to young child,…

A collector of rare items. That’s what my father used to call me. It sounds so much nicer than pack rat. But I suppose a rose by any other name collects junk all the same. Lest you think this puts me in the same league as those weird eccentrics whom you read about in the paper whose homes are packed to the ceiling with newspapers and trash, allow me to set the record straight. My trash is out at curbside every Thursday. I only keep things of sentimental value or which may prove useful at some later date. Granted, the distinction between trash and treasure is often vague, but it’s a highly personal matter. I promise not to cast aspersions on my memorabilia if you accord mine the same courtesy. What determines the worth of a particular memento is your…

Father’s Day 1987 He always wanted us to call him Dad, but somehow we never did. When we were young it was Pa, (don’t ask me why. I’m really not sure). Then the year that I was sixteen Yogi Bear hit the big time and we used to watch it together. Before long we were all saying, “Hey, Boo-Boo” to each other and it stuck to him like glue. He has been Boo-Boo ever since. It’s all the grandchildren have ever called him since they could get their little mouths around the sound, and it has become a term of endearment and love. He has never been ordinary and he has never been plain. No reason why his name should be, either.