What would be your perfect Father’s Day present?
My perfect Farther’s Day present is what we’ve done the last couple of times. The kids and my wife all come in and bring me breakfast in bed, we hang out, and then they bring their breakfast, and we eat so we don’t get out of bed, usually, until 10.30. Get up kind of late, even 11am. Then we usually do something with the family around the house.
Usually we’ll just go eat outside, and take the top off the hot tub, put on some music, and then I’ll manage stuff for lunch, then we’ll spend the whole day just outside, all playing around together. Until we get to the evening, and then we usually cook again. In the evening, open up a bottle of wine. And we spend the day together.
What’s the best thing about being a father?
Father was the only thing in my life that I ever knew I wanted to be. When I was eight years old, I knew I wanted to be a father. I thought I maybe wanted to be a Washington Redskin running back, but I grew out of that. I always know I wanted to be a father. For me, it’s always been the ultimate responsibility. The beginning of the ultimate shadow a man can leave in his life – his children.
What is the most important thing to your father thought you?
A few things. Take responsibility for yourself. Self-reliance. Don’t say can’t. And don’t lie. Now, it’s okay to bullshit, but don’t lie.
What every day things remind you of your father?
I’ve got a great picture of him, right when you come in the house, of him dancing in his underwear. He loved to dance.
And that’s always a fun reminder. The kids know exactly who he is, and understand he’s no longer physically here, but he’s papa. He was Captain Fun. He loved being the host. He loved to cook, and have a beer, and dance, and socialise. He also was a sticker for ‘if you start work at 8am, and you work till 6pm, that doesn’t mean you show up at 8 am. That means you’re on the phone working at 8am. So if you show up at 8 and you’re on the phone at 8.02am, you’re two minutes late. He was very strict about that. And so he instilled a very good work ethic in us.
What is the most important thing you want your kids to remember?
The one thing that our kids know, that they’re always going to know, is that they’re loved. My mother had a great line: ‘I love you, I don’t like you like that’. So when we got in trouble, we never thought ‘but you don’t love me’. And she used to say: ‘no, I love you, but you’re in trouble right now, because I don’t like what you just did’.
Did becoming a father change you?
Sure. A man gets better peripheral vision when he becomes a father, because everywhere I go now, I’m here and I’ve got my wife and my two kids in my pocket. So everything I do is a representation back to them. The way I take care of myself, the way we take care, we stay out of trouble, to my own self survive, I’m the king of the household, I’m the dad, I’m the father.
Are you a strict father?
Strict disciplined. We have fun, but there have to be clear rules and we stick to them. My wife and I are on the same page. We don’t play good cop bad cop. We’re on the same page, we’re very bottom line as to how we parent, we’re very clear. The kids know it’s clear so we’re in sync. I wouldn’t say strict but disciplined. Rules, you’ve got to follow them, if you don’t follow them, there are consequences.
