So it wasn't until I got married that I started to understand just how boring my family is.
Left undeterred, we watch Dateline, Masterpiece Theater, or a foreign movie from the library every night. We can sit and sip tea, doing nothing all afternoon. We play nerdy board games. We go for nature walks. We have crossword puzzles sitting out that everyone communally works and reworks while brushing their teeth.
And then my husband entered the family.
For the first time, camping didn't just consist of drinking coffee by the fire and hiking - suddenly we were *gasp* actually leaving in a car and exploring nearby towns. And family vacations didn't just consist of sitting around and playing Pinochle for hours - suddenly we were *gulp* going to museums and monuments. It was all very confusing and strange, but over the years most of us have learned to appreciate this zeal for exploration.
However, without Rob, we always fall back into our comfortable pattern of Boring Family.
Case in point: I went with my parents (and a load of kids) sans Rob to visit my sister Jane, who lives in downtown Chicago. Feeling like we should stretch our wings a bit, we nervously decided to venture out and go to the Field Museum. Without Rob. I know, right? But it was almost too much - we sat and discussed it for almost two hours, then we spent another 45 minutes trying to find online coupons. Parking was an event. I think we sat at the ticket desk for 17 minutes discussing all ticketing options. Even deciding which exhibit to start with was an ordeal. We returned to Jane's apartment hours later, emotionally exhausted but able to get "your family actually did this...without me?" approval from Rob.
And then came Sunday.
We were through stretching ourselves probably for the next five years without Rob present. And we had coupons. So our outing for the day wasn't visiting The Art Institute or shopping on Michigan Ave - it was a walk to a nearby McDonalds where we stood in line, pretended we didn't know each other, and one-by-one presented our "Get a free oatmeal - no additional purchase necessary" coupons at the register. And then we walked back to Jane's, oatmeal in hand, in order to drink some more coffee and sit around for the rest of the day. It was gloriously boring...and slightly embarrassing to reveal to Rob...but completely par for the course.
1 comment:
Unfortunately, the Sunday discussed here would probably be rated in my book as semi-exciting (at least more exciting than a normal Sunday). In my defense, I did express an interest in walking back to Jane's apartment via a different route, but no one took me up on my somewhat daring idea.
Coby - you forgot to mention that we did save $13 in parking at the Field Museum (not needing an additional car) by hiding both Jane and Sara in the back of our Suburban . . . sans seat belts. Now THAT'S exciting!
Jackie (Jacoba's boring mom)
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