When I was a boy the whole family ended up watching a documentary about gorillas. According to the documentary, the dominant male in the flock was called Silverback because of the gray fur running down his back. He was a big, surly gorilla.
So naturally the comparison with the gray hair down my father’s back made itself, and I tormented him for years by calling him Silverback and making amusing gorilla noises. Naturally.
Today we were talking around the dinner table, and somehow we got on to the subject of monkeys, and I wanted to sneak in a bit of early evolution thinking by pointing out that we humans are part of the great African apes, and that gorillas are in a way of speaking our cousins.
Andrea thinks for a while, then says, “Hey, dad! You’re a gorilla! Because you’re big and fat!”
I just can’t wait until she catches on to the gray back hair…
Anyway, sorry Dad.
Soundtrack: “Fields Of Fire” by Big Country 
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Oh the sweet sting of poetic justice!
I hear they have laser treatments for back hair these days that are very reasonable.
Oh, you didn’t get the memo? I’m straight. The back hair stays.
You’re straight? Since when?!!! I’ve totally been wasting my time.
I know. I’ve been meaning to break it to you gently, but hey, the Internet called and and I realized it was time to bring it all out.
Still, the back hairs are all intact, so everything isn’t lost.
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Hilarious!!
Our daughters know so little of our ego’s needs! “Big and fat” – As we used to say back in the stone age of the 60’s, she’s just “telling it like it is.” Tact is still to come… one hopes!
(Personally I sort of like the ‘title’ of Silverback, however)
Reminds me when I should talk about evolution with my three-year old son. I explained that we were monkeys a long, long time ago. He stared at me with big eyes and said ” Uh, has grandma been a monkey?” Out of answer.