robdale.ca

Yesterday, the Ottawa Sun had an article entitled, "Police prowl for parole jumpers" The subheading was, "Violent robber who threatened to gun down cop top of list"

Here is part of the article:

Det. Brian Samuel doesn't consider one parole violation more important than another.

"They're all important but for different reasons," Samuel says in his office at the police detachment on Greenbank Rd.

He quickly thumbs through some papers and pulls out a sheet. "But this guy will be always at the top of our list."

That guy is Robert Barry Dale, who has been on the lam since April 1995.

He was convicted for several violent robberies across the
country in the '60s and '70s, but local police know him best as the man
who in 1976 pressed a 9-mm pistol to the back of a cop's head and
threatened to execute him.

Dale, now 64, received a 30-year sentence.

He has a son in Ottawa but it seems not a single relative knows
what happened to him. Police have a computer-aided sketch of what Dale
could look like today. The length of time elapsed since Dale first went
missing is of no concern to detectives.

"It doesn't matter. He still has to pay for what he did," Samuel says.

The article is about my dad. Actually, I should say, it's about the guy who makes up part of my DNA. He never really acted as my father per se.

And yet, he has influenced my life greatly.

As a child, growing up without him around (he was in prison), I had no male influence in my life. My mom would date different guys, but none of them ever got involved in my life, at least not in a memoriable way. It wasn't until I was thirteen that she met Gary, and I was introduced to motorcycles. Still, Gary was just like a big child, and seemed to be more of a buddy than a father. Don't get me wrong, he was and is a great guy, I just never saw him as a father-figure.

Robert Barry Dale did influence my life, however. By not being there. I regret very little about my life, but one of the things I wish had been different is having that male role model. The guy who would play catch, or make me feel safe, or teach me to work on an engine, or show me how to treat a woman right. I realize that many of you want to say, "Yeah, but …" and then tell me about the terrible role model your father was, and how he didn't do any of those things. I realize that. I realize that sometimes no role model can actually be better than a bad one. Fair enough. But, I'm talking about my experience here, and what I do wish could have been different.

There were a couple of times after my dad got out of prison when I met with him and invited him into my family. He was invited to my wedding, but he didn't show. Then, just after Brit was born, he was given the opportunity to start fresh. Sure, he couldn't be there as a dad, but he could be there as a grandfather. He never did.

I don't feel any anger toward him. He had a lot of demons he was fighting. Drugs and alcohol played a major role in his life. I'm sure he battled immense guilt for most of his life. His own home experience wasn't the greatest. No, I don't feel anger toward him. I feel sadness. More than once, we reached out to him in love, and yet he simply couldn't find it in himself to receive it. I have no doubt he felt unworthy of it.

If he were to show up on my doorstep tomorrow, he would be welcome into my home. He would be invited to eat with my family, and would be introduced to my children as their grandfather. And no, I would not let ROPE know if he did.

And yet, I don't expect that day will ever come.

Today, my baby girl turns sixteen. It's hard to believe, really. I think back to when I turned sixteen, and the idea that I now have a child of the same age is truly amazing.

Even more amazing is just how incredible a kid she is. Let me rephrase that. What is truly amazing is just how incredible a young woman she has become. Not a day goes by when I do not sit back in awe of how great she is in my eyes.

For many years, I worked as a youth pastor. I have seen many good teenagers. I've also seen a few not-so-good ones. I've cared for teens who were raised in good homes, but made very bad choices. I've also watched teens from difficult upbringings who made good choices.

I don't know how well I've done in raising my girls – I hope I am a good father, and certainly strive to be just that, but I know this: I am incredibly proud of the woman that Brittany has become. Everything I consider "good" I see in her. There is not one thing about her that I would ever want to see changed. She is simply perfect to me.

Brittany, I love you. I am so very, very proud of you. I think you and your sister are the most beautiful, wonderful, amazing girls a father could ever have. The day you were born, God smiled on me and gave me a gift that no words will adequately describe. My love for you is not based on your behaviour, your grades, your choices, or anything else. My love for you simply stems out of who you are. You are mine. My baby girl. My little Bert.

I don't know what God has in store for your future. I don't know where he will lead you or what he will call you to do in life. But I know this: No matter what the future holds, you will always have my support and love. I will stand with you, care for you, hold you, and support you with everything I have.

Today, I wish I could hold you and give you a huge hug and kiss. Mom will have to do it for me! But as you celebrate your sixteenth birthday, know that I am there with you in my thoughts.

I love you, baby. Happy birthday.

Okay, normally I wouldn’t do this … but I’m posting a cleaned up, much better video of Heather surprising Brit in Costa Rica. I’m going to leave the other version up, for those who want to see the difference that a little music and editing can do to a video.

Thanks again to Scott & Melissa Williams for doing all this work.

Here’s the better version:

Okay … thanks to Scott & Melissa Williams, we now have video of Heather suprising Brit in Costa Rica. Hopefully the video quality is decent enough for you to see the look of surpise on Brit's face. It's great.

The video is completely unedited. I was going to clean it up a bit, but figured friends and family would just want to see the video as soon as possible. So it's here in raw format.

I hope you enjoy this as much as I did (yes, I cried the first time I watched it).

So, Heather flew to Costa Rica this morning so that she could surprise Brittany for her Sweet Sixteen.

I'll upload a video of the surprise sometime tomorrow .. but here's a picture that was taken:

It's been 31 days since I last saw Brittany's face. It was that day when she waved goodbye and boarded a plane to Costa Rica. Since then, we've spoken on the phone a few times, chatted on MSN, and sent a few emails, but never saw her.

Today, her host family got high speed and wireless internet. And for the last 20 minutes, I've been chatting with her on Skype Video. I simply cannot describe how wonderful it felt to see her smile, watch her laugh, and look into her eyes.

She took us on a small tour of the house (the parts that are accessible with the wireless). It's a huge house! Simply beautiful. We were able to wave to her host parents, sister, and other family members.

But the highlight was to see her laugh. My baby girl, laughing at something silly one of us said … but I SAW her smile. The last 20 minutes has been some of the best moments of the last 31 days for me. In fact, I am pretty sure they were the BEST 20 minutes of the past 31 days. I simply can't describe how beautiful it was to see my girl.

Now, she's uploading pictures and video. I can't wait to enjoy viewing those.

Thank God for high speed internet, webcams, and Skype.

Some of you may have read my "tweets" about riding the Tidal Bore while on the east coast this past weekend. If you aren’t aware of what it is, the Tidal Bore is when the incoming tide creates a wave that runs through a narrow place against the current of the water. The result is similar to rapids, but without any rocks or places to get hurt.

It is a blast, and is something everyone should experience at some point in their life.

Here is a short video of the wave first hitting our boat … enjoy the yelling!

On Wednesday we decided to just jump in the car and head south. We figured it was time for a little R&R and if we didn’t just do it, it wouldn’t happen. We’ve ended up in New York City. Very cool place!

I’ll post more about it when I get home, but I really love the energy I felt walking down 5th Avenue. The Apple store … well, it was an experience that any true Mac-geek needs to experience at least once. We were shocked at the number of people in the store. And the line up for iPhones was still huge (had to be at least 50 people lined up outside!!!)

Anyway, we are staying at an old hotel (been in existence since 1852) tonight, right smack in the middle of Manhatten. I am looking forward to that experience. AND … there’s a Starbucks right in the hotel! Can’t beat that!

Okay … in case you wanted to see the video of Heather skydiving … here you go:

So … yesterday Heather went Skydiving. It was a present for our anniversary. No, I didn’t jump with her. No, it wasn’t because I was scared to do it. It was a matter of cost. I made the CHOICE to let her jump rather than me. (It’s amazing how many people don’t get that … but that’s a rant for another day!)

Anyway, she went up to 10,000 feet and then jumped out (with an instructor tethered to her).
You’ll have to either squint or click on the image to enlarge it in order to see her in this first shot. However, this is after the parachute has already been deployed. Leading up to this picture, she free-fell one mile in 45 seconds! How’s that for a rush?

This second shot is a little closer to the ground. It was amazing how quick she was moving before the chute opened, and then how slow she descended once it did.

She said that it was so loud before the chute opened, but then it became totally quiet. When Heath was a much younger (I better not emphasize the "much", her daddy arranged for her to go in a hand glider. She used to tell me how silent the world was from a hand glider. She said it was just like that yesterday. It was incredibly peaceful.

Her landing was pretty tame. They came in on a "but landing" and smile and laughing was a clear indication of just how much fun she had. It was cool to see.

It was also cool to see many of our home group there to cheer her on and to welcome her back to Earth.
It took her a few minutes to get her legs to stop wobbling, and then we headed around the corner for supper. It was about 40 minutes before her hands stopped shaking from the adrenaline rush.

Was it worth it? It was worth it to me to see how much she enjoyed it. And, I’m sure if you ask her, she’ll tell you that it was a great experience and one that everyone should try at least once!

Anyway, one more thing to mark off the list of "Things to Do."