as an only child i've been long fascinated by sibling relationships. how they started, how they grew and what kind of state they're in through adulthood. did you fight, i mean physically? how often do you call your sister/brother on the phone, just to talk? would you stay up late at night rapping? did you share a room? a bed? believe me when i tell you my quest for understanding is insatiable.

admittedly, if i'm talking to the people about it, you can typically surmise i like them on some level and when they tell me they have strained or weak relationships with their siblings, i'm dumbfounded. how can someone who gets dealt as cool a human as the one i'm talking with have an unappreciative sibling. it's criminal. i just can't imagine having a live in pal you share everything with. how cool must that be. but, the more i learn, the more i feel my conclusion is flawed. perhaps i'm applying too much of a Brady Bunch', Beaver and Just the Ten of Us perception on it all.

in attempt to reach the truth, i've devised routes of conversation. through these tests, i've found that much can be derived by the mood of the house. what kinds of games or antics took place in a home? in marty's family if you were able to utter the phrase, 'get off of my chest, i can't breath' you obviously could breath which meant they obviously weren't applying enough pressure against your ribcage. luby spent so much time in his bathroom hiding from his knife-wielding 'younger' brother, he reassembled a 20 year old radio from rusted and dusty parts. and the favorite sport in pal Geritol's house, where there were 5 boys each a year apart, was called Late Hits of the NFL. while i'm sure you can draw a pretty acute picture of what this entailed allow me to add the following detail. the second hit, which was a slow-motion replay of the prior full-speed hit, was always way more painful than the first because the placement of the forearms to the back of the head were much more precise.

my conclusion through this scholarly study; we oftentimes covet that which we are not able or willing to pay the price for to attain. because if i were a participant in Late Hits of the NFL we would have talked about that ONE time we played the game instead of reminiscing on how we used to routinely play that one game we all loved.