I just watched this week's episode of 30 Rock. One of the storylines is, naturally, a mini-microwave naming contest . (spoiler alert) The chosen name is "The Fun Cooker," a term that just happens to capture the feeling of my afternoon. An afternoon spent at the multiplex watching "Race to Witch Mountain," starring that guy that used to be called "The Rock" and now has some boring anglo name like Kevin Smith or something. Also two scary blonde kids that are aliens who look like humans (I actually think the girl looks pretty much like an alien). Anyway. As I suffered through this totally predictable movie with the obligatory snarky and well-timed one-liners and an enormous amount of shooting and hand-to-hand combat I thought to myself, "Is this supposed to be fun? Are the kids actually having fun?" Sure, the bucket o' popcorn and something called Squeeze Pops were sending them into a gradual and prolonged carbo-shock, but sugar aside, were they having fun? I wonder about these activities we spend our leisure time on. Movies, McDonald's playland, Chuck E. Cheese's. Are they actually fun or do we feel like kids want to do these things so we plan them? After the 2.5 hours spent in the fun cooker, I'm wishing we would have stayed home and built a pillow fort or just spent time hanging out and joking around instead of cookin' up some prefab "fun."
2 comments:
might I interest you in a theme party featuring Ev-Dog on vocals, Flash on Guitar, Super Q on bass and Beckbot on the drums?
I love your take on this theme. I agree with you! With Danny's sensory issues, over the years, I have found myself wondering the very same things you talked about. In some ways, his SPD has been a blessing, a carte blanche for me to say "no" to many of the typical "fun" kid activities that I know he would have difficulties with. Instead, we have been forced to cook up our own fun, as you say, and that has been really good for all of us. I can always use a good reminder, though, that it is so much better to use our imagination and play than to always rely on the pre-fab fun activities. I need to make some time to build a fort with Danny and Char. Thanks for the reminder!
P.S. The labor was not drug-free. Halfway through, I got an epidural, which curiously, only worked on half my body and then quit working an hour or so before Tommy made his entrance. I'm wondering if I only have to pay for half of it....
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