Pentatonix Made Me Cry Today (In A Good Way)

A Pentatonix cover of "Can't Help Fallin In Love" has me
thinking of my late dad, my marriage and how well things have
worked out. An essay in this post. 

I totally admit I'm a Pentatonix fan boy, having posted a few entries into this blog thingy about them and their a capella music.

Today, Pentatonix made me cry a bit.

Because I'm a sentimental fool.

Pentatonix dropped a new video today. It's their rendition of "Can't Help Falling In Love."  You can see and hear the video at the bottom of this post.

Zillions of people have performed this song.  Perhaps Elvis Presley is the most famous example.

"Can't Help Falling In Love" was one of our wedding songs when me and Jeff got married. As I like to tell anyone, my wedding was by far the best one I've ever attended. (Duh!) And I'll always remember like it was yesterday that moment when they sang "Can't Help Falling In Love" at our wedding.

So yeah, I've got an attachment to that song, to say the least.

I think it's interesting that Pentatonix released this video today on what would have been my father's 97th birthday.

Dad died a year and a half ago.  But here's the thing. Dad always worried about me. Would I do OK? I had some rough times as a kid. Would I slip back into trouble? Would anybody be there for me if I needed someone?  Would someone catch me if I fell?

There was a very noticeable change in how my father regarded me after I connected with Jeff, and after he met Jeff.

Dad still loved me as much as ever. But I could tell dad had stopped worrying about me.  Because I had Jeff. Jeff would protect me. Jeff and I would protect each other. Everything would be OK. And it is.

When I watch the video of my wedding, there's a great moment before the ceremony started. My dad was already seated, and Jeff's dad came in.  You can hear my dad loudly and warmly greeting Jeff's dad by saying, "I saved a seat for you."

Jeff's dad and my dad instantly connected and bonded. They were fast friends.

Jeff's dad is now gone, too. I like to think that my dad and Jeff's dad met up again somewhere in the afterlife, and they're having a great time. And neither of them is worried about us because Jeff and I are doing just fine.

And here I am on a routine day when nothing special is going on, and I'm getting teary-eyed over Pentatonix singing "Can't Help Falling In Love."

It's 5:15 in the afternoon as I write this. I can hear Jeff snoring softly as he takes an afternoon nap. The dogs are curled up with him, just quiet and happy. I'm trying to summon the energy to go out and work in the garden, a garden that both Jeff and I love and are building together.

Everything is OK. I can't help falling in love with Jeff every day.

Dad was right, as always. I'm OK. I guess I'm writing this because I miss my dad on his birthday. But everything is OK. Dad and Jeff made sure of that.

So watch the video below and if there's anybody in your life that you love, and makes everything alright, hug them and tell them everything is OK.

Dads Can't Dance. Usually

One of the "talented" dancer dads.  

Mashable featured a fun video today of dads trying to dance.

Middle aged men, in general, can't dance. I'm a middle aged man, I know. I try, Oh, Lord I try, but I'm no Gene Kelly, that's for sure.

Some of my favorites in the video, below, are the guy in the black socks grooving while sitting in a park with a highly embarrassed kid.

I also love the button down executive looking type trying to dance with a young girl in a pretty green dress.

And watch the bald buy in the background in a stadium when a guy in front of him tries to dance.

Not sure what the guy on the right is doing, but the guys
on the left seem unimpressed 

At least that's what I think he's doing. It could be something worse, I don't know.

More power to them. They're all having fun, and are uninhibited, and that's a VERY good thing.

Maybe my standards are low, but some of the dad dancers in the video are actually pretty good, in my opinion.

Not many of them, but a few of them. I especially like the brief glimpse of the guy on a treadmill.  

I do like how they set all of this supercut to Bruno Mars' "Uptown Funk."

You be the judge of the talent.  Here's the video:

McKenzie Carey And Her Dad Might Be Best Pageant Duo

From Buzzfeed, we get news of McKenzie "Kenzie" Carey, 12, who competes in pageants.  

McKenzie Carey and her dad in their pageant video.
which has gone viral.  

Nice enough. But she needs help from her dad because she had mitochondrial disease, which makes it hard for her to move around.

So dad serves as a bit of an interpretor during their dance routine to the Miley Cyrus song "The Climb."

According to the Blaze, Kenzie had wanted to have a routine to perform like other girls in pageants, so she enlisted her father's help.

I love the contrast. McKenzie in her pretty, frilly pink and purple and blue dress, and dad, this burly dude with a mustache, red baseball cap, jeans and tired t-shirt concealing maybe a bit of a beer belly.

The act works beautifully, as anyone can see in their video, which has gone viral this month.

Probably what makes this so compelling is the look of happiness and security on Kenzie's face as she dances with her father, and the proud I-would-do-anything-for-you expression on dad's face as he dances with his daughter.

Kenzie and her dad are doing this in part to raise funds for expensive treatment for her illness.

Still, the performance makes Kenzie's dad a strong contender for Father Of The Year.

Watch and find out for yourself, but warning: Kleenex alert: