"That's the fact, Jack!"

Colonel: "Soldier, do you mean to tell me that you finished your Basic Training on your own?"

Winger: "That's the fact, Jack!"

Stripes - 1981

Our movies and stories are stocked to the rafters with anti heroes. Anti heroes are people who, in spite of themselves seem to be able to pull off some sort of near miracle against all the odds. We love anti heros in our country. Our founding fathers were all anti heroes.

Steve Martin, Bill Murray, Adam Sandler, Buster Keaton, Laurel and Hardy, Charlie Chaplin and hundreds of other actors told us stories on the screen that allowed us to hope that someday, we too could save the girl, kung fu the bad guy and drive off in the Maserati with all the cash.

The next time you are looking for someone to emulate, you do not have to look farther than your own children, your spouse or co workers. The anti hero lives in all of us. We may not make it to the silver screen and probably no one will come up to us to shake our hands or slap our backs for a job well done. There are not many ticker tape parades for the every day anti hero anymore. My suggestion is to keep looking for ways to help an elderly person in your town, praise your kids a little more for their every day accomplishments and bring a surprise bouquet of roses home for your wife (who had a tough day too). You will get that warm, fuzzy 'anti hero' glow just like they do in the movies. In that moment, you will have become a better hero than of any of Hollywood's characters.