Be Smart Or Get Tough

Writing that last entry made me think of stupid shit I've done, which always makes me think of a conversation I had with my buddy Dennis. In August, I called Dennis to see how he was doing because he was, without a doubt, having the worst time in his life. Dennis is almost sixty and in the Spring his son died. On top of that, Dennis got into a terrible accident which amounted to about 40% of his body burned by gasoline. And on top of that, while in the burn unit, the doctors diagnosed him with diabetes. Go into the hospital for burns and come out still burned with an added dose of diabetes and a son who is still dead. When I think I have a hard day or hard times, I think of Dennis and tell myself to quit my bitchin'.

While I was talking with Dennis that day I was checking up on him, we got to talking about his old man. Dennis's dad was an iconic-Missouri hick dad with lots of catch phrases that stick in your head. The one we talked about was how Dennis's dad would say, "Son, you gonna have to start being smart or get real tough, real fast." This saying was always in reference to prevent doing stupid shit like messing with explosives or drinking too much or driving motorcycles over the legal limit on gravel roads. Most of all the phrase is a mortal one and Dennis and I were having the most mortal conversation I've ever had with anybody. I'd told Dennis about how I'd sort of slowed down on doing too much stupid shit like messing with explosives on camping trips. Dennis told me about how he was just trying to keep breathing without thinking about how his life and body were in ruin.