OpPosITes AttRACt

I'm in Albuquerque this evening and this city always makes me think of a great friend of mine, so decided to write about another “brother” of mine. When I first met this man I’m ashamed to say I pre judged him on looks alone and could not have been more wrong. I hope I may have learned something from that. As I’ve mentioned before, there are a group of us friends that have played D&D for many, many years now. A few years ago one of our group brought a new player to play. When I first met Russ he had a shaved head, earrings, rings, and I’m guessing bare feet. (I say that because I know him so much better now, that it’s a pretty safe bet) He was loud and sure of himself. I remember thinking, “Dave, what have you brought into our group.” As time went by, he became a real part of the group. My initial judgments proved to be wrong. VERY WRONG.  Yes, he was still loud and sure of himself (and at times VERY opinionated), and he still looked the same way, but I learned about the man behind all that.  We actually became pretty good friends. Then something happened…

            I ask my friends quite often if they want to go with me on my sales trips. Almost always the answer is “no.”  I totally understand that. It’s hard to get away even for the teachers in the group, but I still ask. Well, one time I asked and Russ said he would love to. I was kind of taken aback. We were friends, but I still didn’t consider him a CLOSE friend. But the offer was made and accepted so what the heck. To be honest, I don’t remember where we went, but I think it was Las Vegas. This turned out to be the first of MANY trips that Russ would accompany me on. I really got to know the man behind the shaved head, bare feet, and kilts. (oh, did I fail to mention the kilts?) We have spent probably hundreds of hours in cars and hotels talking about all things geeky and not geeky. We make up games. He introduces me to music that I NEVER would have heard if not for him. (I drive and he picks music from his massive collection) We stop so he can take pictures of everything from a field of flowers to an old barn. We debate which one of us is the bigger geek. (I win that one until his father in law’s name comes up. Oh, his father in law’s name is Bruce Wayne. How awesome is that? J ) We stop to eat at places that I would normally drive by. He has taught me to not “pass by” life. He has taught me to see the beauty in the world around me. He has taught me to not judge based on looks alone. In fact, one of the things I enjoy the most is walking into a store about 3 seconds behind him when he’s wearing a kilt. The looks he gets from locals (especially in small towns) are priceless.

            Another thing that’s interesting about us is how different we are in a lot of ways. I’ve always been a pretty conservative Republican while he’s a liberal Democrat. We talk politics and though I often feel wanting in knowledge in that field, we still have wonderful conversations where we share ideas and opinions without the fear of any anger or animosity. This has been a real blessing of sorts during this election season. If I have a question that I want a liberal view on without the propaganda I can ask. Differing views are just that. There is never any anger or bitterness between us. I’ll also admit that he’s a lot more willing to try things (especially foods) than I am. I enjoy trying new things, but I do have limits, whereas he’ll try most anything. Chocolate with jalapeños in it or hagas, it doesn’t matter. (though he has vowed to get me to try hagas)

            Another great thing is how well our families get along. His girls are much older than my kids, but they really get along almost like family. My kids get excited when they hear that we’re going to Russ and Tamby’s house or that they’re coming to our home. I’ve heard the term “brother from another mother” before and it always made me chuckle, but that really is a great way to describe him.