Spotlight on Dads - Jim "BusyDad" Lin

Spotlight on Dads is a weekly series from Discovering Dad that features involved fathers from around the world. The objective of the series is to inspire fathers to connect and learn from one another, while also deconstructing the stereotype of fathers as 'second' parents.

This week's spotlight shines on Jim "BusyDad" Lin who shares his experiences at The BusyDad Blog. Jim and his family live in the Los Angeles area, but he should be living in a palace in China! Read on to learn about his royal connection.

Tell a little about yourself. Known worldwide as BusyDad (Hey, I have one reader in Australia, a couple in India, and one in Taiwan, according to my stats report, so hell yeah I’m claiming worldwide, foo!). My secret identity, though, is Jim Lin. That name is SO Google-proof. Just TRY and stalk me. You’ll get through 50 pages of Jim Lins before even coming close to finding me. I have one nutty 6-year-old boy named Marcus (better known as Fury), a kick [my] ass wife named Lisa, and two dogs. We have sea monkeys too. I hear they're cool again.

What about your family background? I was born and raised in Boston. But if you trace my family history to the motherland, I was destined to be the Emperor of China. Damn, that would have been such killer blog fodder!! IAmTheEmperorSoPeelThisGrape.blogsnot.com would have definitely made it to first position on AllTop.com’s A*shole World Leaders section. I’m not bitter that the Communists took over China and forced my grandfather’s aristocratic butt into hiding. Not at all (Boycott the Beijing Olympics!).

"I was destined to be the Emperor of China."

Enough crying over spilled ambrosia. My life is great. I’ve been married almost 7 years to my “summer love.” We met at a bar when she was here on business from overseas. We had a great time for a month. She went home. Oops! She brought back a souvenir that needed 24-hour care by two parents. She flew back. And, we’ve been winging it ever since.

What do you like most about being a dad? Playing with Star Wars figures. I mean, how cool is it that I get to go to Toys R Us?? OK. OK. I can be serious too. I love being a dad because there is no better feeling in the world than knowing that I matter. It’s the equivalent of a wandering Ronin finally finding a master to serve. It gives me a feeling of real purpose.

What do you find most challenging about being a dad? Walking the line between best friend and authority figure. I mean, my kid is the kind of guy with whom I would love to share a few beers (in 15 years of course), but I also know that I’m the guy who will have to take the keys to his '68 Camaro convertible (yeah, I’m working on making that a reality) when he comes home 3 hours after curfew on May 20, 2019.

What's your most memorable experience(s) so far as a dad? Oh this is a totally impossible question to answer. Pick any one of my blog posts. However, dressing up as Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons one Halloween and winning the local costume contest is pretty high up there. We had to beat out a lot of Dora the Explorers, Ladybugs and Elmos.

In general, how do you think dads are perceived? Why? Definitely a lot different than when I was a kid. Back then, Dads had one responsibility: bring home the bacon. Dads had it EASY back then. Work is simple compared to parenting. You know your boss will not throw up on you unexpectedly, or stick his hand in piping hot soup. Dads today definitely play a more involved role in raising the kids and doing the household chores. I think that’s a good thing. Being involved in every little part of my son’s life has been the single most rewarding thing I have done thus far. Going to work has not been.

"Work is simple compared to parenting."

How has the experience as dad helped you discover something new about yourself? Surprisingly, it hasn’t. I have always loved kids. I have always been good with kids. I was babysitting for all the families on my block in 4th grade. Fatherhood is everything I ever expected it to be. Maybe I was a dad in a past life?

Who do you go to for advice about fatherhood? No one. Wingin' It since 2002! I should trademark that tag line, unless some hot wings joint has already claimed it.

Do you hang out with many other dads? If not, why? If so, what do you do together? No. Most of my friends are single. This is why I LOVE Dave & Busters. My single friends can meet me there, have a few beers, pick up chicks and have a great time. I can have a few beers, keep my son entertained and … watch them pick up chicks. Really though, it’s all good. I wouldn’t trade it for the world. I’m past that. The single life is merely a spectator sport now.

Tell a little about your blog. I thought you’d never ask! BusyDadBlog.com. I started it last fall because my daily commute consisted of spending 4 hours a day on a train. I’m not a big reader, and looking out the window at the Los Angeles social landscape was only interesting for the first 3 days or so. Prior to launching my blog, I had never even read a blog before. I simply had a son who did the funniest things, and I was tired of sending out emails with 20 attachments every few days. I’m sure friends and relatives were sick of me and my wife clogging up their inboxes too. As far as the theme of my blog goes, I keep it humorous and lighthearted. Life isn’t always like that though, and my blog helps me to keep things in perspective. It helps me laugh and get through the rough spots. I know I will always be able to smile as I read or write it, and that saves me tons of money in therapy, as well as whiskey expenditures.

"Blogging has changed my life. Not in the infomercial way, but in a positive personal way."

Anything else you'd like to share? I just wanted to say that blogging has changed my life. Not in the infomercial “look at my pimp ass yacht” kind of way (I don’t even have advertising yet), but in a positive personal way. When I started blogging, my goal was to entertain people, but I looked at it as a one-way interaction (like a magazine). This whole comments and making friends aspect of it was a total unexpected bonus, which is the main reason that I will never stop doing it. Knowing people enjoy what I put out there; interacting with me through my blog, social networks, chat and email; and, really CARE about me (as my recent job layoff has proven) blows me away. Completely. I have made real friends through this blog. Not OMG-Ur-Hawt-MySpace friends, but real friends who are in the same boat, share similar interests, and truly understand what I go through each day. That there is priceless. Oh, and I’m hoping for a book deal someday -- at which point, I will grant you another interview. On board my pimp ass yacht!

Next week's Spotlight on Dads will feature another fun and crazy fella! I hope you will join me on this adventure!

Spotlight on Dads is a weekly series published every Saturday on Discovering Dad. Please feel free to share your thoughts in the comments section. Your feedback and recommendations will help to shape this series. Thanks!

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