Meet your Uncle Christopher: The "Cool" Uncle

This is your uncle Christopher. It's his birthday today and I thought I would let you know a little bit about him. He lives in sunny Vancouver (at present) with your Auntie Shanna in a dreamy palace called a "condo." Uncle Christopher is the person whose company you will prefer to your father's when you are about thirteen years of age.

Why is that?

The reasons are numerous, but first and foremost: because he's not your father...he's your uncle. The second and secondmost is that he's your uncle with beer.

I will say this right now: there is far more to your uncle Christopher than beer. He is an accomplished businessman and is a caring partner for my sister, but to a thirteen year-old you, he is going to be the fun uncle that hikes up mountains for fun and then hoists a frosty beverage at the summit. And the coolest part? He made the frosty beverage he drinks.

Your uncle is in the volatile but never boring beer industry. I would not feature this so heavily if it did not have so much to do with how he came into our lives. I first came to know of him by way of an alarming phone call from my sister's friend one morning before I was on my way to work. This friend had taken auntie Shanna and my van out the night before on an uncharacteristic night of bar-hopping (uncharacteristic for Shanna...I think her friend was more accustomed to it). When I answered the phone that morning, I learned that this "friend" had allowed my delicate sister to be spirited away into the night by a sterling swashbuckler she identified only as "some beer guy."

I was, of course, livid. How could this girl have been so irresponsible as to misplace my sister? A "beer guy?" These roving bandits are the greatest Lotharios alive! Would I ever see my lovely and modest sister again? Most importantly: where was my van? I had to get to WORK!

After some time (4 minutes and 37 seconds) of intense panic, my sister (and my van) showed up safely and soundly. She explained that she enjoyed a glorious and colorful night at one of the city's less reputable but more exciting all-night coffee shops with a delightful fellow named "Christopher." It turned out that he was, in fact, a beer guy but he was more of a beer-selling guy in town to make sure that business was solid at one of his more profitable accounts.

A nice guy. Who takes my sister to coffee shops and protects her from roving weirdos at 4 a.m. A guy with a job and a plan and respect for women (are you taking notes here?). That didn't sound so bad.

I wish I could say that my suspicion ended there, but it did not. Greatly assuaged though it was, my concerns did not fully abate until uncle Christopher came to the city some weeks later and introduced himself to me. He looked me in the eye, shook my hand, and treated me to a beer (or two...Daddy never has more than two of those).

Since then, I am happy to report that we have grown very close. Uncle Christopher is a valued and loved member of our family who has demonstrated time after time that he isn't afraid of the oddity of our small Saskatchewan clan or the panic-attack babysitting that comes with it (sea kayaking, anyone?). I think for people like your Mommy and Uncle who come to us from experienced and well-traveled people, it might take some getting used to our relatively unadventurous prairie natures. But I'll tell you a little secret...one that only you, me, and (now) the whole internet knows: I may have taken some getting used to, but he had me at "Full-Bodied and Refreshing Lager."

So, let's tell him together: Happy Birthday, Uncle Christopher! Feel free to stop by our house for 2 (and ONLY 2) beer!

Love, Dad