Before we get started, writing this blog the night before 9/11 I wanted to reflect on my memories of that terrible day. I was in Manhattan that day. I remember finding out the planes had hit the building. I remember the fear in my office on the streets. Being outside smoking one of the many cigarettes I needed that day, as we heard a rumble and a guy next to us said that was the tower collapsing. I remember seeing people crying in the streets. I remember taking the train out of Grand Central and we all held hands. I remember coming into the city the next day and you could have walked right up Madison Ave in the middle of the street because there were no cars, and later I watched a 100 army vehicles coming down Fifth Ave. No one was saying anything. Nothing. Pure shock. It was a sight I thought I would never see. A sight I will remember forever.
Well, summer is over. People always seem to be a little upset that it has ended. Fall is my favorite time of year. I love the feel of the brisk morning air. The smell of the leaves falling. The thoughts of what to dress up as for Halloween. plus the holidays are right around the corner.
It’s also football season…
Now we all know I’m a loser. So, of course, my favorite football team has to be a loser too. I’m a Los Angeles Chargers fan.
Being that my team plays on the left coast, they are frequently during the 4 pm games. So I have to strategize, how I can spend time with the wife and kids, make Sunday dinner and watch football all afternoon. I’m telling you, people, I’m living the dream here.
While my loving wife understands, she also knows how to play her cards right. She knows that I’ll put in my family time all day Saturday and Sunday morning. She knows she can ask me to do just about anything and I’ll say yes. Fuck, she could say that we were going to a “how to live a vegan lifestyle seminar”, and I would probably shut the fuck up and go. But afterward, I would eat a rare porterhouse steak. Fuck that shit.
I’m sure that a zoo visit is in the cards within the next few weeks. My wife loves the zoo. So do I, but I’ve been there six times this year. I’ve been there so many time, the fuckin gorillas know me. Once the weather gets a little colder, if you need to find me just go to the Norwalk Aquarium, there’s a good chance that I’ll be there with a smile on my face.
That’s one thing that makes our marriage so good, we both lead our own lives outside of our marriage. Giving your partner the freedom to do a few things that they love to do, makes for pure marital bliss.
Now, to give you an example of how opposite we can be, in my free time I want to play golf, go out to dinner with my two remaining friends (which might be down to one soon) and watch sports. Occasionally I go nuts and go grocery shopping. What the fuck has become of my life? My wife, Lorelei will attend lectures on woman’s rights, protest marches, go out to dinner with multiple friends, etc.
I have tried to get the kids to watch the games with me, mainly Cameron. He has sat through about 3 minutes. He called it boring and wondered why his idiotic father was yelling at the TV. He then asks if we can we please watch some dumbass cartoon that he has watched 487 times already. I typically smile, and say something like “here take a swig of this NyQuil”.
Sometimes I do feel a little guilty because I’m spending a lot more free time by myself, doing something that I enjoy. Should I feel this way? Maybe a little bit. But parenthood is a lifetime commitment, and I know that I spend a lot of time with my boys (and wife), and have created memories that’ll last a lifetime…and headaches that last for hours.
Now, anyone who has looked at my Facebook page knows that I love spending time with my boys. They’re my world. So over the next few months, on Saturdays, I will be doing whatever they want to do. I have no problem with that whatsoever.
Native New Yorker, now living in Connecticut. Husband, and father of two amazing boys. Kidney transplant recipient, and a big supporter of organ donation #donatelife. Mortgage banker, but not by choice. In my free time, I enjoy golf, reading (especially presidential biographies), and finding that hole in the wall restaurant that has great food.