Guess Who's Having a Birthday on August 26?

My father celebrates his 70th birthday today, August 26th. Wow, by looking at him you'd never guess it. He looks great.

There's a lot to love about my Dad - he's the most generous person I know. Growing up, though he was busy with work, he was always at the important events in my life...which meant a lot. And now that I'm grown I see how he's sacrificing his time and means to create memories with his kids and grand kids. Anthon adores his Papa.

My Dad for the most part grew up in Salt Lake City and had a paper route. He is named after his dad, the original Anthon Steffensen Cannon. As a side note, my Dad's older sister, Flora, is named after their Mother. So I'm sure conversation was confusing at times around the dinner table. Dad was on the debate teams in high school and college and he served an LDS mission to Australia where, as legend has it, he was actually the best man at the wedding of his companion who had just finished his mission (times are different, aren't they?).

Upon returning home, he studied political science at the University of Utah and was a member of the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity. If you saw that fraternity nowadays you'd wonder how such an upstanding guy could join a group like that...but he assures me that it was different back then. I, however, am not convinced.


He married Mom, drove back to law school in Boston, then moved to New York to pursue a career practicing law. Evidently the illustrious career could have been for naught. During his ethics interview, after taking the New York bar exam, they unearthed an unresolved jay-walking ticket he received in San Diego when the Utah debate team descended upon the poor, unsuspecting town. Those debaters get in all sorts of crazy trouble!

In 1975, about 6 weeks after I was born, my family moved to La Canada, California, where they have lived ever since. Growing up in LA with my Dad, our activities ranged from playing tennis on Christmas mornings, attending Lakers games in the 80's 90's and 2000's, and adventurously tagging along on Dad's exploration of new, odd and sometimes disgusting restaurants - Managua anyone?. I was also an unwitting sidekick when Dad went "Dirty Harry" on a few squirrels in our back yard who were causing trouble.



I'm blessed to have a great father who's been there for me and loves me. What a great example he's set and I'm trying to be like him now that I too have a son. It's been wonderful these past few weeks and months for my son to get to know his Papa better. I hope I can be half the father to Anthon that my Father was to me.

So, happy birthday Dad. I love you.



PS: I've tried to upload a smattering of funny and interesting pictures of my Dad through the years. He used to keep a "family humorous" section of pictures (slides) at our less than best...nostril shots, funny faces, etc. I've thrown a few of my favorite ones of my Dad, though if I had dug I'm sure I could find more embarrassing. From the top - picture of my Dad and me...maybe our first picture together. Then a picture of my parents before getting married. The next picture is of my Dad riding a camel on a trip to Egypt and then one with Shaq. You know, my Dad and Shaq are old buddies.

My other favorite picture is from my Dad's 50th birthday, but you'll have to click on the link to see it. I don't want to embarrass him too much.