Written on June 21, 2022

My dad is tied for the most thoughtful person I know award with my mom, and since today is his birthday, I’m going to slow down around him.

I don’t know if he has a sixth sense or just pays close attention to detail, but if there’s a remote possibility you might need something, he has it. Did he happen to pack that tiny screwdriver to fix broken sunglasses when he was getting ready to come to NYC for the weekend? Of course he did.

Did he clean every air conditioner filter at our OC rental place every year for more than a decade? Yep, sure did.

Has he changed the oil in every Traber vehicle for more than 50 years now? You guessed it.

When my brother lived in Federal Hill, did he just so happen to have the obscure part to fix their ceiling fan (or light- the details are fuzzy)? It just so happened it was in his trunk. Did he get mad when he was nearly electrocuted fixing it? Only mildly irritated.

My dad is thoughtful, kind, funny, light, selfless, loving and taught me the importance of looking out for the ones you love and quietly lending a hand without the expectation of accolades. In fact, he would probably prefer this post flew under the radar but sometimes you just need to shine a light on the heroes among us so that on their birthday they can shine a little brighter.

Happy birthday Dad. May this next year bring you fewer sunglass projects, more beach time and a whole bunch of laughs and love. And if you’re really fortunate, only a couple trips to Scanlan’s for the Traber fleet of vehicles.