The Paranoid Dad --It's Always Something

I worry incessantly about my Ds. I'm my Dad's son in this regard -- he was ALWAYS worried about my sisters and me -- and I've pledged to try to deal with my anxiety better than he did. My mother was convinced that his short life was at least partly because of the stress that came from worry. So I try... When the Ds fly, I follow their progress on flightaware.com. When D1 left for a summer in France, her flight disappeared from the status updates. Before I learned that trans Atlantic flights can't be tracked once they're 3 hours off the US coast, and her plane did NOT nosedive into the ocean, I aged a bit. It's a bad mental sickness to have, I know. I battle it daily. So what could be better for an anxious father than a predator on the loose on and around a college campus? Not too much. So sure enough, Gainesville has one -- some creep has grabbed 4 UF students -- fortunately not raping them -- 3 escaped without injury -- one was beaten. There's the expected media circus, and a huge increase in police protection. But, I mean -- really??? We ordered D2 some mace online -- it's sold out in Gainesville stores. She's very aware and safe. She'll follow the Broadway song advice, and never walk alone. Hopefully they'll nab this animal, or he'll move on. My friends have daughters who live in NYC. There's a whole cast of creeps there, of course. My favorite is the guy who throws young women in front of oncoming subway trains. Whenever the Ds visit NYC, or Chicago, or Philly, I get to deal with this diverse array of dangers. Wifey is blessed to be without my brand of anxiety and worry. She just knows the Ds will be fine. I truly envy her attitude, and try to emulate it. Maybe it's time for our adorable Spaniel grand dog Bo to welcome a Rotweiller brother...