This Is Why You Can't Have Nice Things Day!
Your Dad is an executioner. He assists in the administration of lethal injections at the State Prison. Everyone in your town works at the State Prison, but your Dad is one of four executioners on staff.
Your mother explains it to you every once in a while, and she'll explain it to you again the next time you proclaim that it's not fair to you.
"It's your father's penance," she says. "He has to end men's lives in order to bring an income into this house, and he has problems with spending that income on anything that isn't necessary, like shoes. Trust me honey, I've tried to bend his rules. But anytime I've put up some nice drapes or cooked him a steak, he just asks me politely to take it down or take it away. Or he'll tell me that he's sorry but he'll have to be donating to the Salvation Army a pretty dress that I just bought. It's the way it is."
When you ask your mother why he won't look for another job, she says, "He loves his work. He was never content to just vote for the Governor who was pro-capital punishment. He really wanted to be the guy pushing the button. 'Only way to make sure the sons of bitches fry' he used to tell me on some of our first dates. There aren't many men in this town, honey. No more than a dozen or so."
When you ask her if she'd be willing to leave your father and take you with her so that the two of you can share the wonderful life that you deserve, she'll say, "Sounds good."
You leave tonight. You're going to miss your Dad, but if he's going to put the murder of America's monsters before the happiness of you and your mom, he deserves to go it alone.
Happy This Is Why You Can't Have Nice Things Day!
