Like Mother's Day, Father's Day is a bittersweet time for many children young and old.
Some people lose their fathers early, while others feel the scars of a bad relationship or grow up with a crater-sized absence where a dad should have been present but for whatever reason, was not.
Fear not. If there's no father in your life, you can now rent one via an app called Catcher.
The purpose of the app is simple and steeped in nostalgia for a bygone era when quality dad time involved digging out a baseball and glove for a game of 'catch.'
With many of today's fathers "too busy working" to play catch, the app sources willing stand-ins to play the dad role. Instead of working to change this sorry state of affairs by finding ways for modern dads to work less and be more present for their kids, we now look to apps for an alternative.
The thinking is reminiscent of the recent classified posted by this couple seeking surrogate grandparents for their children. In the age of disconnect, people are increasingly recognizing the importance of having role models for their kids - and turning to tech to fill the human void.
"If we can use Tinder to find a date and Uber to find a cab, why can't we leverage technology to have a catch?" asks app founder, Brody Perkins.
It's an interesting concept. Is it legitimate? Who knows. It might be. After all, organizations like Big Brothers and Sisters were founded on the very idea that you can glean the benefits of having a sibling without the incumbent pain of sharing the same roof. So it stands to reason, you can be fatherly without actually being a father.
It stands to reason, you can bond with an adult male without necessarily having to share his DNA. At least that's the theory.
Everyone needs a father figure, I'll concede that much. But there is one major flaw with Catcher: not everyone wants to play catch.
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