A story about Darren as Clare's Dad.

Some alliances just make themselves. Darren a/k/a Clare's Dad falls into that category. I've throughly enjoyed his company on this NaBloPoMo adventure. Thanks, of course, to the great choices made previously by The Odd Mix. (See A Little Cheer for the explanation.)

I think we can firmly establish now that I do not read people's profiles. I read their blogs ... I read about their lives ... their stories. So, I was very surprised to read in Dirty Water Dogs and Black and White Cookies that Darren and his crew lives in CT and takes the train to Manhattan. If he's living there and doing that, he's practically a neighbor! Well except that I'm on the NY side of the tracks. Listening to him describe Manhattan gives me the ability to believe that it's more than "what I see traveling to and from the airport -- a distant row of very tall, very grungy brown buildings that make me shudder with claustrophobia." I find myself looking forward to my trip that my husband is planning for us as uh ... what was that ... oh yeah a "bridge and tunnel" tourist.

Darren as Clare's Dad is involved in his daughter's life and he doesn't mind helping her get in touch with her feminine side. You may explore how he accomplishes this in Costume Parade, and Secret Project – Part Two.

In She Made Cleaning Up After the Party Worth It, we see that Clare's dad is easily put on cloud nine by his daughter's hugs and praise. But even in the end of this post and even more so in Segregation, Part 2 we see that Darren is also "on to" his daughter's ways.

He's also on to the ways of Clare's school. Now, Darren seems to think that much of this is because Clare is attending the same Catholic school that he attended and from which he "graduated twenty years ago." I don't think so. I'll let you read through his blog and decide for yourself, though.

As all parent's must, Clare's Dad is also remembering that he is a person – a human being. The parents who fare best in the short and long run of the parenting game are the parents that surface from the parenting trance ... as sweet and intriguing and binding as any trance can possibly be ... and realize that they are still adult humans who must have assistance from and give assistance to other adults. Amazingly enough, the world was not created to revolve around immature short people. They are fascinating and time consuming and endearing ... a worthy mission. But there comes a time when we "have to keep company with adults." And what we do with the adults during adult time "needs to matter – to count for something in this world." (Quotes denote phrases uttered by parents all over the world.) (OK and we aren't addressing the immature tall people in this post. Short version: Avoid them – run! The world implodes around them.)

The first clue that I had to Darren's abilities as a mover and a shaker in the adult world is his collection of Daddy blogs. My first thought when I saw it was "Alright! A Daddy Blogger who knows his fellow Dads!" Then I watched him interact with other parents in ways that both addressed what was real and strove to give hope or encouragement or just a simple Half-time Pep Talk: A Little Cheer. I look forward to having Darren's company on our continued blogging adventure (sans NaBloPoMo x-).