Sunday, November 12, 2006

No, really

Today, I did the 'wave/smile/nod/wink' routine with an old friend who is a new father. He grinned back at me and said, "We're traitors - we defected - we're on the other team. We're parents now!" by way of rejoinder when I briefly greeted him. I'd meant to congratulate him and tell him to keep up the good work, since he was enthusiastically helping his wife deal with their baby.

Somewhere between a nice moment of admiring his chubby-cheeked young and what could have been an awkward silence, I smiled and replied, "It isn't people switching teams that bothers me - it's the whole losing all sense of self thing- but you guys aren't going to do that." We quickly went back to admiring his baby and I thought back to last year with more than a little sadness. What I was thinking in l'esprit de l'escalier was, "It isn't other people switching teams that bothers me, it's the relentless recruiting for the other side."

Of course, any parent will tell you (rightly so) that the second Junior shows up, the "old them"goes right out the window. That isn't what I'm talking about - there are so many cool moms and dads out there who have retained plenty of "self". The bit where one gives birth/becomes a father and disappears (for the next five years or so) into a cloud of organic talcum powder substitute is what I take exception to. Seriously! Today Scott said to me, "Duuuude....did _______ come straight from the 80's or what?". Now to be fair, ____ looked more like 'straight from 1992.'

The other thing I take exception to is the whole notion that we are either for or against one of the 'teams' (the Haves or the Have-Nots). What to do? The second I do anything to support the 'other team', I am peppered with questions and knowing winks and nods. When I cut a wide berth around the other team (See: Yesterday), I get shunted into the categories of "selfish", "cold" and other unfavorable, judgemental misnomers. What to do? Will the farmer and the cowman ever be friends?

In other, totally unrelated news: We have a situation here at Casa de Meepers: I've already detailed how Edie has a history of (attempting to) eat things that she shouldn't. The latest development, however, has gone too far. The other day, I took my laundry out of the dryer and thought, hmmm, I really should be line-drying my lingerie...But didn't do much about it. The other night, I noticed that she had stole my clean new bra from my clean laundry pile and was exuberantly biting, chewing and kicking it to death.

Fynn strolled over to investigate, and was rewarded with a menacing growl and the the threat of a paw to the face. Sadly, this is typical behavior for the two of them...he's just so mellow that he'll all but let her walk on him. She's just a little tigress! Heaven help us the day she gets into my gel-support department.

3 comments:

Unknown said...

Glad to see you are posting because, honestly, I am confused! Didn't you text me and ask me to publish for you? But every time I've logged onto your account I haven't been able to find a draft ready to publish.

I don't think I can handle this kind of pressure!!! What if you miss a day during NaBloPoMo?!? You'd never forgive me!!!!! Our entire history of friendship would completely destroyed!

;)
LOL I kid! I kid!

Talk to me, babe.

Maya said...

No, no, that was JUST for those 4 days last week and the week before. Am perfectly able to publish now, thanks one miLLIon times!

The pressure? I like it. Plus, I figure it this way: Today is already day 13 of posting. We're almost half done. I just started really going at my bathroom, and if need be, I can devote at LEAST five entries to the holy terror that is.

PS Ask E to give me a what to/not do for Venetian plaster. (Just for the area above the trim and the ceiling.) It took me about 2 hours to scrape a 6 foot x 18 inch area down to the sub-wall today. Ugh.

Unknown said...

Weird, because I just got your text message last Friday night, to which I replied "no problemo, senorita". The text message must have come in earlier without me knowing it was there or something.