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Most men can be fathers, but it takes special effort to be called a dad. And a rad dad? Well, that's just a next-level accomplishment in the dad community.

Instagram page Rad Dad posts memes about stereotypical upper-middle-class American dads, e.g. Middle-aged dad who refreshes himself with a can of cold beer after mowing the lawn in his New Balance sneakers. The fact that they are described as rad and not cool or lit adds to the homage for today's middle-aged dads, as it is '80s slang, the decade when many of them were youngsters. Bored Panda selected the pinnacle Rad Dad TM memes from the page for you to chuckle at.

More info: Instagram | middleclassfancy

The page has merchandise: their designs of t-shirts, marble grey sweaters, and caps masterfully capture the style of rad dads and since they are illustrated with stuff like grills and embroidered New Balance sneakers, the whole apparel becomes super meta. Middle Class Fancy, the company that sells the merch, has its own meme page we recently wrote about. Middle Class Fancy and Rad Dad content sometimes overlap, as many of these dads do cookouts in their back yards, suggesting they are middle class.

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Ryan Deschanel
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2 years ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

It totally sounds like the plot of a bad movie that could exist.

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Older dads of today might have noticed that not only is their youth slang back in right now, but fashion too. It seems that gen Z and alpha kids have found and brought back their dads' clothes from the eighties and nineties in secondhand stores, got bowl or mullet hairstyles, and started vlogging. Or flooded the streets, creating flashbacks into their youth for these rad dads. Just try to imagine a 55-year-old today teaching their son how to keep their mullet pristine or what bomber jacket goes with which basketball shoes.

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Interestingly, the style of rad dads is not tied to a specific decade or generation so strictly. It appears that many dads just develop the same sense of casualwear style as they turn middle aged and these trends haven't changed much for over two decades now, much like middle-aged women cutting their hair short.

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Vicky Z
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

In a parallel universe a seal dad is wishing happy birthday to his kid too (right)

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Scagsy
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

That, ladies and gentlemen, is what a Legend looks like. (Yes, with a capital 'L' - he's that good).

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With anything English slang, the authoritative source of explanation is user contribution-driven Urban Dictionary. Here is the top explanation of a "Rad dad": "1. any dad who spends quality time with his kid as much as possible. 2. dads who surf, skate, snowboard or any extreme activity and teach their kids. 3. dads with long hair, mohawks or body piercings and dont give a shite what anybody else thinks."

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Requiem
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Im a people watcher and have done loss prevention and can see two people at different ends of a store and know whos together and who isnt.

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What makes dads rad for you? Do these stereotypes apply to dads in your culture? What elements of dad culture have you adopted? Is it starting to take double chin selfies with a great view of salt and pepper nose hair? Growing a beer belly over the quarantine's baby boom? Share in the comments below, let's make it a safe space for rad dads.

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Manndy Fisher
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Buhahaha, the literal translation from other languages is always brilliant!

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Scagsy
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

When they close the bar back up they are literally causing a fence.

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iblowsheep
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

yeah but by that age it;s more likely they have done something to deserve the torture.

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Kevin Erdős–Bacon
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

No, don't argue about who's going home - revel in being on the same wavelength!

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Manndy Fisher
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

You forgot left in random places glasses with vodka so kid would think it was a water

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California Jones
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Been there. 🙄 Then he told me I was being lazy, I just needed to focus, and eventually I was just useless. Wonder why I have a panic attack when I see equations, and failed algebra...?

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Bobby
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

for me helping my kid it was: "it's 9 + 6, that's 15, why do you need all these extra steps?!" i hate new math

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Rebekah
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

My dad wrote out all of the times tables, up to 12, on a yellow legal pad. He then had it LAMINATED. It was a scary day when my sister handed it down to me. Yes, I still have it.

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BlackPearltheSeaWing/NightWing
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

My dad does this to me but for algebra. He's so good at math that he doesn't understand when other people don't get it. He doesn't mean to, but he does.

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Jaguarundi
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

In my case it was my Mom. She would rant, rave and scream at me while my dad stood out in the yard and smoked.

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Shelby P
Community Member
2 years ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

my daughter may have experienced this but not because I wanted her to tell me the answer but because I couldn't freaking remember simple math with her f'ing Common Core math

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Moya Satterwhite
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I’ve been sent to the kitchen because I got the giggles and couldn’t stop. Some people are so bad at math they get punished for other things.

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Karen Clark
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Nope. I was the one shouting at Dad. "Dad! What's 12 times 7".

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Yakisoba
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Yeah, then when I got it right my dad would act like it was so easy for a 7 year old whose first grade teacher taught yoga in class most of the time

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M.T. Noah
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

dyscalculia is a thing. scream all you want, but my brain will never give the same answer twice.

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Claire Murray
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

No, I still do. But I've learned to suck it up and try to focus.

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pamela nichols
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

My son yelling at my granddaughtger bought memories. His wife and I told him off. Smart-ass says well whos going to help her?

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Doggo Kiddo
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

That definitely happened to me but i had both parents threatening to not let me see my friends for a week if i didn't do the maths

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Anna Repp
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I did not yell at my kid, but she could never get 7*8 right. IDK why - she figured out the entire multiplication table, we learned how to count in twos, threes, fours etc. But 7*8 was just a magic code that would turn her brain off. She'd rattle an answer to any multiplication combo I'd throw at her, but as soon as I'd say "what's 7 times 8?" her eyes would go blank and she's just sit there... And that did not just happen once or twice - that's been going on for a couple of months!

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Marty BlackEagle-Carl
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

yep, mine was my mom, 3 decades later i learn i have no short term memory because of dyslexia

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Samantha Melnychuk
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Oh, my poor poor sister, she had trouble with 9x7. We still yell that at her.

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Martine Lawley Thouvenin
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

OMG! so many times... I am very right brained and my father was a PhD in nuclear physics with no patience and no understanding of kids... in fact I believe he hated them.

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Paul Alex
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This, in a nutshell, is how my father raised me. He did this with everything. Then he would feel guilty for calling me stupid and apologize. That really doesn't work.

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NgatiDreadz
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Anyone here still add s**t up With there fingers?... no... just me then lol I'm 31 btw fml

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Chloe *Leah* Pheonix
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

SORRY DAD I CANT SEE THE PAOER THROUGH MY TEARS AND MAYBE IF YOU STOP YELLING WE WOULD ALL BE FINE sorry needed to get that off my chest

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Nikole
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Oh my god, that's horrible. Way to make a kid hate math and ignore the real issues, dad.

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2x4b523p
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

My father once asked me - while checking if I studied for my biology test - what happens when you slice a potato and put salt on it. Then proceeded to scream at me for hours when I didn't know. 30 years later I still don't know.

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Kristin Hartman-Pezzello
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

An hour of my dad screaming "s-c-i-e-n-c-e", now spell it... wrong! You are not leaving until you spell it right!

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Ivana
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

My father would rattle off fractions at the speed of light and then demand to know what was so hard about that. I don't know dad, I was 7 and didn't work construction everyday like you.

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Hannah Edwards
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Telling the time for me. My mum would be screeching at me in frustration and I would be crying. Nightmare. I started to grasp it when I was about 9.

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Monic Krugell
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

and then phone their wives about everything that they actually needed in their bags for the day

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Jessica Rabbit
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This made me laugh really hard. My husband and I have always liked to BBQ, but once he turned 35 we got a smoker and have been into it since hahaha

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Manndy Fisher
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

And now if you will be lucky to get house like this you won't be able to afford family or shoes..

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Monic Krugell
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

lol - I could feel the uncomforted need for someone to wake up, but the want for them to stay asleep.....

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Scagsy
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Almost true. You have to include cops and firemen. Maybe even a builder.

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iblowsheep
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

HOLY S**T. I do not want to know how much money that dude spent that day.

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