On The Silly Side by Jimmy Del Ponte

(The opinions and views expressed in the commentaries of The Somerville News belong solely to the authors of those commentaries and do not reflect the views or opinions of The Somerville News, its staff or publishers.)

My son turned 16 on Monday. Okay, I know that some of my friends that are my age have grandkids close to 16 years old but that doesn’t matter. I can be this dad and his grandfather! I got a late start, but it’s all good. It keeps me young and I am up for the challenge.

How things have changed since I was 16. The things that are strangely alike are the hair styles. We both had the same long hair style even though it has been 43 years since I was 16. He has iPads where we had crash pads. He has an iMac and we had Big Macs. We are also both musicians, and we both were given a younger brother. I weaned him on The Beatles, Bowie and Joel. He is now into Coldplay, Weezer, and Foster the People. Every so often he gives me a glance of approval when I can actually identify one of his songs. My son now writes his own music and performs it with the band Stainless, along with his younger brother and a friend. They have performed at Artbeat, as well as at The Somerville Theatre in the Holiday in The Ville show. He is president of his sophomore class, which is pretty cool. He was very interested in the Occupy protests and is very concerned about all this piracy and illegal downloading of music and videos on the Internet.
When I was his age we were having walkouts and demonstrations at the high school. We were protesting the dress code. I also took off for a weekend and went to Washington DC with a VW bus full of hippies to protest the war in Viet Nam. If my son did that today I’d freak out…maybe. I can’t even remember what cockamamie story I told my parents in order to be away from home for a whole weekend. My son also writes short stories and makes films and videos with his brother.
It seems like yesterday that I swapped my Camaro Convertible for a double baby stroller. My boy was little and all he cared about was Barney, binkies and sippy cups. And when he was almost two he got a little brother and he was, and still is, a very good big brother.
When I was his age we had Bradlees, Woolworths and Lechmere Sales. Today they have Newbury Comics, Best Buy and Gamestop. I am very happy that he and his brother still enjoy going camping with me. It’s not that they enjoy spending time with dad. You see, there are teenage girls at camp. Need I say more?
We also share an interest in going to as many antique shops and yard sales we can find. My boy inherited my love of junk. But this kid is brimming with ideas, plans, and determination. He can do whatever he wants to. I will try to keep him on the straight and narrow as much as a parent (and friend) can.
Today, I can fit into his clothes and vice versa. His clothes are cool and mine are nerdy. Just the thought of being the same size is scary! Him and his brother are still growing and could crush the old man if they wanted to!…Maybe!
I don’t know when that little boy all of a sudden turned into a 16 year old young man. I guess we were all too busy with the day-to-day stuff to see the transformation. But I have huge hopes for this kid. I am proud of him. I hope he gets a scholarship to college so I don’t have to dip into my retirement fund. Better still, I hope he becomes famous with his band so that I can sponge off him!
I am sure the next few months are going to be very interesting for our family. My 16-year-old son will be getting his learners permit soon. God give me and his mom patience! He will truly become a man when he is able to conquer the Powder House rotary. Oh, and Lord…please keep an eye on my boy! He is my right hand man. Happy Birthday Joe!

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Jimmy is available to host your event, play music, or just spice up any party or function. Call 617-623-0554 or jimmydel@rcn.com

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You can email Jimmy directly at jimmydel@rcn.com