"And I stiiiiill haven't found, what I'm looking for..." Or have I?

I have to say, the greatest love in my life will always be my daughter.  So let me just put that one out there right now!  Before I go any further, I think it is safe to say that the way I feel about my child is unconditional!

Now with that stated, she IS going to leave me.  She needs to leave.  As a parent, I am raising her to be able to stand on her own and go off and be her own person and live her own life.  She has to make her own mistakes and experience her own thrills in attempt to achieve her own level of greatness!

That breaks down to the basic fact that I will always love her and she will leave me.  She has to.

Now, as a parent, I started out married.  I felt remarkably similar about my wife as I do about my child.  However, apparently, much like my own child, our marriage was all about me helping her grow to a point where she could eventually leave me too.  YUP.

Soooooo ... I can try to invest my love in a dog right?  A dog will love me unconditionally and I must admit, I will keep any dog I adopt for the duration of their life, but I am not certain if my love is "unconditional."  It's the whole "Don't crap in the house" condition.  I'm pretty keen on dogs accepting every aspect of "the world outside is your bathroom... the world inside is your bed" policy.  But if they can't get the whole "don't go potty in the house" thing, that my friends is a condition!

But aside from that, dogs leave too.  I've never had one run away, but painfully enough, they die young.  They are such fragile creatures that we accept into our family.  Three dogs in three years has not given me the confidence in yet another long lasting relationship.  Yes, one dog I lost to old age a little over three years ago and a second I lost at 18 months old to a fluke illness of sorts.  My current dog has been with me a little over a year now.  She is a great joy, but she's still nuts.  I'm guessing that in about two years she'll settle down and be "normal" and then I'll have maybe 8 more years with her?  It's sad to think about it, but she will leave me too.

So, what do I know right now....

1. Kids = Leave
2. Spouses = Leave
3. Pets = Leave

And all three leave a lasting impression on your heart, good or bad.

So, I can be all macho and say "I love my truck!"  It is scary to me how much people have loved their cars in the past.

"WOULD YOU LOOK AT THAT?  I'VE BEEN POLISHING HER UP ALL DAY!  I USE SPECIAL SOAP AND WAX AND CHAMOIS HER WHOLE BODY EVERY SATURDAY!!!  LOOK AT THAT CHROME SHINE!"   Followed by, with much less excitement I might add, "over there is the wife and kids.  Honey, could you move, you're blocking the sun light from hitting HER front bumper."

Nope, that's not me!  Sure, I do appreciate my truck but it's going on ten years.  Yes, it takes me where I want to go, but I'm pretty sure I have some say in it.  Let's face it, it's a vehicle to serve a purpose.

I'm just not the car loving type.

So, what I am looking for you might ask?

Well:

I want to be loved unconditionally too!
I do NOT want to be judged for what I am wearing, or the lack there of, at any given time!
I DO want to be held; hey, I'm an 80's guy!
I want to be able to lounge around for hours and watch television.
I do not want to have ANY fear of ever being left!
I want soft skin to caress at all times.
I want it to get better with age!

Well, guess what folks!  I have found what I've been looking for all these years!!!

You've been with me all along and you'll NEVER leave me oh so comfy chair!

Yes... goals and perspective do change after 40!  Just... just be happy for me!