A little Daddy-related flotsam and jetsam

Happy Father's Day!

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My father never gave me, by fire or water, a baptism into publishing; he wasn't a baptising type. He adopted the sink-or-swim method, so the first few weeks I was at Scribners, in 1946, my assignment was to deal with Ernest Hemingway.

--Charles Scribner, Jr.

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I once said to my father when I was a boy, "Dad, we need a third political party." He said, "I'll settle for a second."

--Ralph Nader

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My Dad's idea of a good time is to go to Sears and walk around.

--Jay Leno

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From "Men and Birth: The Unexplainable" by Haki R. Madhubuti

this is the drama, birth the maturing force that can transform males, making them men of conscious, making them bringers of life and partners in the fight to guarantee better better futures.

birth

unlocks cultural strangulation allowing

men to feel & touch & experience

a source of love that springs in

smiles occasional tears and undying commitment

***

From the song "Out of the Cradle" by Neil Peart and Rush

Surge of energy, spark of inspiration
The breath of love is electricity
Maybe time is bird in flight
Endlessly mocking
Here we come out of the cradle
Endlessly rocking
Endlessly rocking

It's a hand
That rocks the cradle
It's a motion
That swings the sky
It's method on the edge of madness
It's a balance on the edge of a knife
It's a smile on the edge of sadness
It's a dance on the edge of life

Here we come out of the cradle
Endlessly rocking
Endlessly rocking

***

In time for Father's Day, Monster announced findings from its second annual poll of working fathers, which reveals a work/life struggle among today's dads. Despite a common belief among those surveyed that bringing work home is not healthy for family life, seven percent more dads are bringing work home on a weekly basis compared to last year.

Notable highlights include:

1. Fewer dads are taking advantage of paternity leave benefits because they feel they cannot financially afford it (38 percent, down eight percent over last year) or because they feel too busy at work (27 percent, up 13 percent over last year).

2. Seventy-three percent of dads would be a stay-at-home parent if money were not an issue, a seven percent increase over last year.

3. Above all other work/life related benefits, working fathers most appreciate a flexible work schedule (52 percent).