Super Genius
My daughter calls me Super Genius, but not in a good way. She doesn’t mean Fruit Loops with marshmallows genius (If you haven’t tried this perfect breakfast cereal, stop denying yourself). When she calls me Super Genius, the words are accompanied by a smirk and an eye roll. She means Wile E. Coyote Super Genius. . . and I’m okay with that. She even bought me this nifty shirt.
I earned this designation by sharing all the trivia stuck in my head with my family at the dinner table. So this means we made a habit of sitting down and eating dinner together, and even (gasp) talked as a family during that time. So yeah, I tell too many “dad jokes” and spout off nonsense trivia, but it beats each of us burying our heads in our cell phones only coming up for air for a “pass the bread.”
Besides, Wile E. Coyote is one of my childhood heroes. That dude never gave up! Get blown up, fall off a cliff, get hit by a train—it didn’t matter, he always came back for more. That coyote had a goal, and he was determined to reach it no matter what. To be honest, I always cheered for Wile E. Coyote. He was the underdog (or would that be undercoyote?), and that roadrunner was a bit too arrogant for my taste.
So when my daughter calls me Super Genius, I just smile.
That’s me.
When the roadrunner finally slips up, I’ll be the one strapped to my Acme rocket ready to swoop in and finally reach my goal. Or, maybe it’s off the cliff again. Who can say, but you can’t stop trying.