Burton Fine (1930–2024)
Elaine’s father.
Schrafft’s, plural
Looking for the Schrafft’s where my mom and dad may have eaten lunch.
Dad, i.m.
He showed up in a dream — not for the first time — on July 13. He tapped me on my wrist and said “Michael?” It was unmistakably his voice.
Dad, i.m.
He showed up in a dream in July, a couple of days before what would have been his ninety-fifth birthday.
A joke in the traditional manner
What do dogs always insist on when they buy a car?
Dad, i.m.
I’ll listen to one or more of his CDs today — maybe Ethel Waters, maybe Lee Wiley.
A joke in the traditional manner
On what would have been my dad’s ninety-fourth birthday, I continue in the traditional manner.
Dad, i.m.
Six years.
Father’s Day
My dad, not yet a dad, in Florida, 1954.
Florida, 1954
My mom in Florida, 1954. Photo by my dad.
A secret message, of course
From Jerome Kern, Oscar Hammerstein II, and Peggy Lee, on the anniversary of my dad’s death.
A joke in the traditional manner
What’s the worst thing about owning nine houses?
Dad, i.m.
He’d have been ninety-two this year.
A trip to Binny’s
I picked up a few bottles of wine, and filled my cart with beer bottles so that I could compare labels. I met Ben and showed him a small front room, paneled in dark wood, with cheap American beer and brandy on the shelves. I explained that it must be the Upper Midwest room.
Father’s Day
I had a conversation with my dad in a dream a couple of weeks ago. He wanted me to order something for him from Amazon — no doubt a CD. But what? Maybe he’ll call back.
A joke in the traditional manner
Why sharpen your pencil to write a Dad joke?
McCoy Tyner (1938–2020)
One of the highlights of my dad’s life as a tile contractor: doing work in McCoy Tyner’s house. My dad loved jazz and knew exactly whom he was working for — and getting to listen to through much of the day.
Dad, i.m.
In 2016, I encountered this passage, attributed to John Chrysostom, but easy enough for a non-believer to agree with: “Those whom we love and lose are no longer where they were before. They are now wherever we are.” Dad, you’re still around.
A joke in the traditional manner
Did you hear about the shape-shifting car?
No mistakes
I asked my mom, What did you do to correct mistakes? In the 1950s she was an executive secretary. I was hoping to hear some story of office supplies in pre-Wite-Out days.
“The Sudden Departure”
“When a small town loses 100 people in just a few hours, kids come home to find their parents missing”: “The Sudden Departure,” reported by Lilly Sullivan, is a story from the April 19 episode of This American Life.
The Mental Load
I can’t remember where I learned about this comic: Fallait demander, or The Mental Load. Every human male should read it.
My mom is a smart person
“That’s crazy!”
Dad, i.m.
He’s an example, always, of how to be a father.
“How did that happen?”
Hannah Gadsby, in Nanette (dir. Jon Olb and Madeleine Parry, 2018), recounting her mother’s explanation of what she regretted in raising her children.
Music for Father’s Day
I’ve listened to the last of my dad’s CDs: Lester Young.
An editorial
A New York Times editorial: “Seizing Children From Parents at the Border Is Immoral. Here’s What We Can Do About It.” Have you called your representatives in Congress yet?
From my dad’s CDs
Lee Wiley.
From my dad’s CDs
And now, composer, pianist, organist, singer, and bandleader Thomas “Fats” Waller.
From my dad’s CDs
Joe Venuti and company.