He's a Little Boy, Daddy!*

In reading this blog, you might think that Ginger and I are the only siblings in our family. False. I know we've mentioned him in passing before, but there is a very special someone I think we need to tell you about: our brother.

Clay is four years younger than me, six and a half years younger than Ginger. It’s true: I am a middle child. This was great for me growing up, because I could play Barbie’s with my sister, and when she got too old and cool for that, I could play GI Joes and Micro Machines with Clay. It’s also great for me now. Ginger and I went to the same college and then lived in the same city for a short while before she moved to Arizona. Now Clay goes to college in the same city in which I live. Lucky me!

Clay is quite different than my sister and I. Neither Ginger nor I went the sorority route in college. But Clay chose a different path, and is very involved with his fraternity. For some reason it tickles me to no end to hear Clay talk about his "brothers.” (WHY is that so funny to me??) My sister and I went to a Christian college. My parents literally couldn't pay Clay to go there. Ginger and I like a variety of foods. Clay....well, we'd better not even go down that road. Ginger and I don't care if we look goofy in public or in pictures, but we find this frequently mortifies Clay (and I'm not gonna lie...we kind of love embarassing him).

Here’s an example of something that Clay finds hysterical, starring his comedy idol Andy Samberg:


The dynamic between Clay and I and Ginger and I is very different. When we’re together, Ginger and I love to go walking and we talk and laugh a lot and go to church. When we’re together, Clay and I love to watch funny YouTube videos and we make fun of each other a lot and watch multiple episodes of a TV show. A text message from Ginger is an inside joke or a picture of her doing something weird. A text message from Clay is one word (or more often, one letter—“K”). Of course, Clay and Ginger have a different dynamic with each other than they do with me. Both of them enjoy sports and me? Not so much. They both keep up with current music, while I generally don't know about a new artist unless I get a mix cd from Ginger or Julie. Also, it should be noted that Clay and Ginger only see each other on Christmas Eve.

Of course, for as different as Clay and I are, we really have a lot of similarities. We both love television and movies, and Clay has an impressive amount of knowledge about old films. How many college-age guys have you met that have seen “Bringing Up Baby” or “To Be or Not To Be?” Exactly. We like a lot of the same TV shows-- I was delighted when I got him addicted to "Heroes," and even more so when I hooked him on “Freaks and Geeks.” You couldn’t call either of us “neat” people (an area where we differ greatly from Ginger). We can both be pretty nostalgic, and are very protective of family traditions, just because that's how we always do it!

In closing, Clay has graciously agreed (after only some berating) to add some thoughts of his own to this blog, so I’ll leave you with a few tidbits directly from the mind of my brother. And if we’re lucky, this could become a semi-regular feature. Keep your fingers crossed!

If you don’t like the Cowboys, there’s something wrong with you. And your team sucks.
Noodles rule.
I love fish even though I can’t eat it.
George Lopez is not funny.
Yes, I know I look young. Please don’t tell me it’s a good thing.
I can beat you at laser tag.

*A very old inside joke. You would not find it as hilarious as we do, trust me.