A window into my world....
perhaps a keyhole view into someone else's future
the other night my old friend Rob came over
he did not come over for drinks
he did not come over for dinner
he just came over to "hang"
dinner and drinks were part of the evening... but company was the objective
Lisa was at yoga so Rob got to assist me in the standard fatherly duties
basically.... keeping the kids alive
while trying to keep Dean and Grant alive they also need to be fed and entertained
Rob tagged along and assisted as best he could
as this routine is somewhat forgein to him
we went up the block to get something to eat at Tonic in the Mount Pleasant building
Tonic has a Wednesday Kids Night thing... kids under 12 eat free!
it is a nice way to embrace the families in the neighborhood
it is also a nice way to coral the families to one night a week
so we do not risk ruining the night of the single romantic types
during that time most of my focus was on my boys
kids needed to be corralled up the road safely
we quickly went to the man to man defense
Rob moved with Grant
while I covered the faster and more wild Dean
Grant moved at a fast pace for a toddler
while Dean moves at a fast pace for an Olympiad
neither has a direct trajectory
both have a different set of objectives
every acorn deserves their attention
each house with decoration causes a stall
parked cars may cause a delay
construction vehicles are a manditory stop
the whole walk to the restaurant had that Billy in Family Circus way about it
we zigged and we zagged and we finally arrived at our destination
I ordered for the kids before our bums warmed the seats
we ate
Rob and I talked in between trips to the bathroom to wash hands
trips to the bathroom to go to the bathroom
and
trips to the bathroom just as an excuse for them to explore
it is tough to focus on adult conversation when there are potential fires and ketchup related traumas
after our dinner which included far more tater tots than broccoli
we marched back
an after dinner mint bought me more rapid passage home
for several blocks I was able to stack the boys in one stroller
Grant on top of Dean
Dean using his arms as a seatbelt to fasten Grant in
there was only one spontaneous ejection
no blood
no tears
once home there was wrestling on the floor
the boys ran their usual tag team attack with me on the floor
exchanging between the scissors hold and the anaconda
I have become the pro wrestler that my oversized frame has bred me to be
my opponents are little blonde midgets who never tire
rob watched in awe slouching on the couch
exhausted from the whole experience
as rob watched he may very well of had a keyhole view into his own future
as just days after this dinner event rob was scheduled to get married
and as the old teaser goes.... first comes love, then comes marriage, then comes "someone's name" in the baby carriage
after the no holds barred cage match we went upstairs to prep the boys for bed
pajamas were put on
faces were washed
teeth were brushed
books were read
kisses and goodnights were shared
doors were closed behind us
with the boys in bed I leashed the dogs and put on a Petzel
Rob and I headed across the street for a brief walk with the dogs
everyone needs to blow a little steam at the end of the day.... even the dogs
on this walk we talked
I let Rob know that the evening he experienced was not a specially hard evening nor was it an especially easy evening.... it was just a standard evening with a wife, two kids, and two dogs
after the hike were were down the basement to talk bikes
showed off my new cross bike
and then my fixed gear project... a bike a few parts from completion
then from bike talk we talked life and marriage
I had no advice for Rob
Rob seemed at ease with the whole marriage thing
no questions
no fears
it was getting late
with a hearty handshake and a quick goodbye we sent rob off
letting know we would see him just days later at the rehearsal dinner for his wedding
wonder what went through his mind as he drove back to Baltimore from DC?
