Look at this fucking wise guy

 Look at this fucking wise guy





      The education of Greg Sheehy was not all accomplished in classs rooms and lecture halls but some of it came in the front seat of a Mercury coupe with John F. Sheehy at the wheel. Greg told the story of how his Dad lost track of time and missed their normal Sunday mass at St.Emydius so he decided to take in the next one at St. Helen just across the small town of South Gate. The Gate was always divided between the two parishes and all of us knew the terrifying sight of Monsignor McGuiness at Emydius or the wise gaze of good Father Kelly at St. Helen. On this particular Sunday morning John took the regular streets to St. Helen, heading north on Otis up to a left on Southern and then a right at Madison. He wasn't in a hurry but found some wise guy teens intentionally causing him to slow down as he headed west on Southern. The driver noticed a full-grown man at the wheel of the Sheehy car and decided to do what teens do whenever they have the chance to irritate their elders. The kid slowed and the other punk held a soft drink cup out of the drivers side window like he was going to throw it back over the windshield of the Merc. As the kid kept blocking John's progress the Catholic parent forgot himself for a moment and the fact that he was heading toward worshipping in the name of Jesus. Greg could hardly believe his ears when he heard his Dad blurt out between clenched teeth "look at this fucking wise guy!" Now, the men in our lives cursed freely but never used the F-word in front of women or children. It was considered somewhat uncouth to drop an F-bomb so for young Gregory the effect was both jarring and hilarious. He often described the event with a perfect recreation of the red-faced Dad heating up and letting loose. He estimated it was just the first of only two times when he heard his Pop resort to such language. We compared notes and in my case I only heard my Dad say fuck twice also. BC  let fly a "dirty son of a bitch" in his descriptions and John might call a driver an "asshole" but the F word was reserved to very select occasions.



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