VR DINKS
Me: Facebook just asked me if I wanted to join their VR High School. (long pause) That sounds just awful.
Her: (laughing) Agreed.
Me: Like, who on earth would do such a thing? Who thinks that’s a good idea? Why not just have “VR Let’s Stick Two Burning Red-Hot Spoons into Our Eyes?” It’d be about the same.
Her: I would want VR DINKS – Dual Income No Kids.
Me: Yeah, young adults with freedom and just a bit of scratch.
Her: Exactly. But VR High School sounds awful.
Me: What on earth was Zuck thinking? VR High School: Relive having no freedom, no money, and constant anxiety?
Went to the kid’s school the other day for a presentation he had.
Essentially, it was a business project, with every kid playing a role in sourcing materials, crafting, marketing, and selling bracelets.
Went in and bought the middle tier bracelet ($3.75) because all the other parents already cleared out the first-tier bracelets ($5).
Him: Thanks for coming!
Me: Dude, have I ever missed anything you’ve done?
Don’t envy the kid having to go to school.
Granted, I liked being a kid and I liked parts of school – it was the only place where I didn’t feel that oppressive loneliness – although I’m not sure the alternative was much better.
Having said that, I remember wanting so much to be older. I try to tell myself that, there was once a time I dreamt of having all that I have.
I think being grateful for the things we once wished for and now have is the key to happiness.
While VR DINKS sounds like something that might be fun for a bit, I can’t really imagine life without the kid at all.
He’s just such a good little guy and I’m so proud of the fact that he’s so resilient.
Which is good, because he’ll have to be with the dense people that seem to surround him alla time.
Me: How was your field trip?!
Him: Below average.
Me: Oh man, do you wanna talk about it?
Him: Not really. (pause) Well, we were on the bus for three hours each way with NO AIR CONDITIONING. Everyone was super hot.
Me: Oh, that’s not good. I’m sorry, kiddo.
Him: And…the person there asked a bunch of questions. One of them was “Whoever lives with your mom and dad, step forward.” And (long pause and a cracking voice) I was the only who didn’t step forward.
Me: (sighing) I’m sorry, kid. Adults are really stupid sometimes.
Him: Yeah. I didn’t…it didn’t feel very good.
Me: (sighing again) Yeah.
I still sigh a lot around here.
Location: the gym, worried that I crippled someone. I did not. But he’ll need ice for a while.
Mood: forlorn
Music: she never dies. Wipe that tear away now from your eye (Spotify)
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3 replies on “The key to happiness”
That’s an awful question for kids for many reasons! Someone should educate them a bit on how that can negatively impact kids in a number of situations! Grrr!
So odd – I responded to this comment but it’s not here.
In any case, I wrote something like: I’d rather it not have happened at all, obviously, but I’m regularly impressed with how resilient he is. And, in the end, I suppose he’s going to be dealing with these types of boneheaded comments his whole life so he’s gonna have to learn to deal with it at some point.
[…] My last entry stuck in my head because of a line I wrote which was that there was once a time I dreamt of having all that I have. […]