Golden Nose

Dad's nickname came from my uncles who adored my father who was the only college educated person in either side of my parents' families. Ambitious with a dry sense of humor, he was known to hunker down so deeply while working that he often was unaware of anyone around him, but once his work was done he also had a reputation for cutting loose. One of the famous tales that I loved to hear as a kid was the New Year's Eve he and my mother spent with my aunts and uncles in Florida when he stopped his car in the middle of Dale Mabry Highway, jumped out and ran in front of the headlights, and proceeded to do a wild Flamenco dance to the delighted whoops and hollers of everyone else. Apparently, he was respected for his work ethic and loved for his joie de vivre.

As a young, married father of three, Dad was rail thin and burned off what little extra weight he might carry by working hard, long hours. He was determined to become successful in his profession as a store designer and planner, building anchor department stores for the 1960s popular shopping mall concept and did not fail in that regard, but the road to getting there was long and arduous So, each summer he escaped to Florida for his two-week vacation in the sun. He couldn't wait to run joyfully down the sand to the water's edge, but the poor guy's skinny, gangly legs protruded from his swim trunks like tree sticks knobbed by his boney knees. Without the padding of his work attire (suit, white starched shirt, tie, classic Trilby hat) that provided some bulk, Dad's body looked more like a rendition of Disney's cartoon characterization of Sleepy Hollow's Ichabod Crane and amazingly both sported rather prominent noses that jutted like rocks from their thin faces. However, Dad's nose provided him a regal appearance, especially after it turned an amazing golden brown as he tanned. Thus, my uncles dubbed him: Golden Nose. The affectionate nickname stuck for years. On the other hand, Dad's nickname for my mother was "Mernie" and no one else called her by that name. No one else would dare to do so. That name belonged to my father and only to him.