I don’t want a repeat of last night. There’s no gain in that situation. Tired, cranky, and run down isn’t the way to good writing, but it has been a way of life as I adjust to a new life that I’m still very much catching up to. TodayI got to spend all day with my boys. We wound up playing video games, talking, bowling, and watching Cinderella. Things didn’t go very well after that, but a brief recap of the early part of the day serves as a reminder of why I love being a dad.
My kids are horrible ungrateful little creatures who fight and argue and complain about everything that doesn’t go exactly the way they want. In other words, they are young boys–pretty standard boys at that. I love every minute of the interactions. I even enjoy the challenge of reminding them to be better men; of reminding them what it feels like to be a friend, a brother, to love, to be part of something larger, to define yourself. Today we talked about togetherness and getting along with each other. We played games together and then we went bowling. At some point the mid-kid decided that I wasn’t playing the game the way I could and decided to run his mouth about my lack of skill. Of course I had to take that bait and teach a lesson. After that lesson was dutifully learned we headed into the theater area to see Cinderella.
I’m going to pause to reflect on some reactions to my boys seeing this film. They aren’t those kind of boys–you know, the kind who believe watching Cinderella is only for girls and have to act super masculine when anyone talks about girl stuff. I have the other boys. I have the boys who really don’t give a damn. The movie was wonderful and surprisingly Buddhist in its philosophical slant. I suppose it always has been, but I never paid much attention. We all reflected on her actions after and the boys were cool with Ella’s choices and ability to ‘shake it off’. I’m not quite convinced they’d do the same.
In the end we had a good day and I got to spend time with my boys. Not much in life is better than that.
Some Thoughts:
- NBC’s new sitcom One Big Happy is basically an episode of Chicago Fire done in comedic series form. I’m not exaggerating. A specific episode of Chicago Fire focused on Severide impregnating his Lesbian best friend and roommate and then getting a girlfriend who it seemed could become a serious lover. This is the entire premise of One Big Happy.