yYou Think YOU Have Problems!
What about TIHS poor little guy? All dressed up and presented in good faith as a token of esteem……
Only to find yourself ravished and taken advantage of a few short hours later……
Tragic, isn’t it?
So much to say….so little motivation to say it. Must be the fact that I ate enough at dinner today to feed three small countries. Bleh.
Is my family the only one that’s always about drama at holidays? It’s clockwork in our family. Holiday/Drama. Drama/Holiday. Easter’s drama went something like this…
Sis’s 2 sons were coming down to visit their mom and dad for a week at Easter. Nice for them! So Sis asks me what I am going to do about Easter dinner. I was just about to ask if Taco Bell was open for Easter, when I remembered that holidays are big deals in Sis’s family. Easter is not on my holiday calendar so much any more, other than as an honorable mention. I am not a church-goer and my kids are long past the age of egg hunts. SOOOOO – instead of being a smart-ass about Taco Bell, I asked Sis what SHE wanted to do?
Well…the boys would be down and lets have dinner at her place. OK. I know Dad won’t go for that – he won’t drive that far (Yeah – it’s less than 30 minutes, but he has his quirks and this is one). HOWEVER, I promise to ask. Sure enough – Dad wants to go out to dinner – but NOT to pay for 8 people as he usually does. He wants Sis’s hubby to step up to the plate and pay for his own family. I promise to tell Sis….and I do. She grumbled, but agreed.
RECAP: We have now agreed to a family holiday dinner with the out of town boys where everyone is going dutch treat.
The week goes on. One boy decides not to come. Boy #2 calls the night he is supposed to show…and says OOPS! I’ll be there tomorrow. Tomorrow comes and boy #2 calls again. OOPS! I MEANT I’d be there TOMOROW, tomorrow. So, by day 3 of lateness, he finally shows up – with a new girlfriend in tow – Surprise!
Saturday morning Sis calls and tells me that it won’t be convenient for Boy #2 and GF to have dinner at 1:00 on Sunday because they are now planning to go to Busch Gardens. So….Sis is having dinner at her place later in the day and then we can all go to the drumming circle on the beach together.
HUH?
I got agitated…a bit. Normally I would just get mad and hang up so I could stew and rant and rave. But I decided to tell Sis about it instead.
ME:That’s not what we planned. We made plans around you and your family and now you want to change it to plans that you KNOW Daddy won’t agree to at the last minute. Boy #2 is self-centered and wants us all to drop whatever we’re doing to revolve around him. He’s 33 years old and its time he started to consider other people.”
SIS: Well, he’s just like that.”
ME: He’s your son and you’re willling to tolerate that behavior out of him. I am not. He was here at Christmas and rearranged his schedule every hour or so…..and somehow never even found time to spend 10 minutes visiting with me. That hurt my feelings. Now he’s doing it again – and I’m not playing the game.”
SIS” That’s your decision. He’s like that.”
ME: “He’s old enough NOT to be like that.”
SIS: “You sound angry. You should talk to him directly about this.”
ME: “Be glad to. When do you think he might rearrange his schedule to fit me in for ten minutes?”
SIS: “Oh. Well we thought the drum circle would be something you could go to with us and enjoy.”
ME: “Really? Without asking me if I’d enjoy it or if I already have other plans that you might be interrupting?”
SIS: “Well I want to spend time with my son…………”
You know what? This has me pissed on two levels. ONE – my nephew is a self-absorbed pompous ass. TWO – my sister doesn’t have the spine to tell her son that he’s being a jerk. She won’t stand up for me. After all the times I ran interference between her and Chickie when Sis lived here for a year……and I am no more important that dog poo on the shoe.
Sigh.
We did eventually go out to LUNCH without Son #2 and the GF. And the tab? Yep – you guessed it. Daddy paid for everyone. Sis and hubby just sat and looked at the ceiling when the bill came. I was really surprised. Sis and I disagree about things sometimes, but she KNEW what Daddy had said….and she knows what a putz he can be…and she knew they were expected to pay….and its not like her to take advantage in that manner….
Well – you know what I’ve got to say about that? Just this……………
You’re going to tell them to go suck that little pink egg? Families… aren’t they fun?
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ryn: Thanks – I changed it a tad since you visited – not much but a little.
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oh how stressless and fun.. reminds me of why I *miss* all the family holiday get togethers.. that last pic – so cute lol ;o) lie down and regurgitate now lol.. hugs
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It’s during family holidays like this that I’m REALLY glad there’s at least the length of one state between us and extended family. Why is there always ONE person who’s the designated Go-Between, and where do we go to get un-elected? Happy Taco Bell!
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Oh my gosh, maybe it’s a good thing I don’t really have a big family!
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Taco Bell would have been a better choice. They serve a customer at a time and everyone has to pay for their orders before they getr served. Sticking your dad for the whole bill wouldn’t have been as easy. Besides it’s cheaper. I like their taco salad.
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You make me feel good that my family is far far away…
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families, aren’t they fun? And are you telling me that my kids are too old to be hunting for eggs and getting easter baskets? Oh dear, there was a 25 year old and his wife, a 19 year old and a 12 year old all hunting for eggs this morning, and fighting over the chocolate ones! I’m not telling them! LOL 🙂
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As my mom used to say, you’re never too old for chocolate Easter bunnies or chickens. LOL! I’m glad you told your sister some of how you were feeling. You’re absolutely right about here son. He needs to get a smuck in the head. That makes me boil about them not even offering to pay their part of the tab. Families sometimes huh? *warm hugs*
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That chicken shat an egg! Oh, don’t you just looooooooove families????? Your nephew needs some therapy, if you ask me. (Of course, if you ask me, just about everyone needs therapy, so never mind.)
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and I bet your dad will blame you for not telling her! She needs her ass kicking , hon! Hugz
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I left home when I was 17 and just never had family around. So Roo and I get married and one Christmas his family wants to have dinner at our house. They also want to invite friends for a total of about 20 guests. Boy, did I put on a spread for a 2pm dinner. They called at noon and canceled. lolol
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RYN: You mean I was supposed to hide those eggs outside? No wonder they still like to do it, I hide them in the house. I’m afraid if I hid them outside there would be 1 dog and 4 cats with chocolate all over their faces and some really guilty looks. Not to mention all the squirrels and raccoons! LOL 🙂
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HAAAA!!
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lol ryn.. no the cootie site is safe, I’m almost positive I got it when I went to a site that listed a bunch of blinkie sites!
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Let’s have Nephew #2 go head for head with my stepdaughter and see who comes out the most spoiled, self-centered, and inconsiderate. Blah! Ak! Ptui! Poor dad! But if he’s anything like Pat, he can’t say “no” to the bill if it’s in front of him. (Just like when we invite his mom & dad for Sunday brunch, and then his adult niece and fiancee come along…..$90 lunch bill. Blah! Ak! Ptui!)
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(continued)Your nephew and all the above make me want to bite the ass off a chocolate bunny….got any left in your basket?
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Your sister is selfish, her son is a boob and your father could have insisted on their paying their share or letting them wash dishes. With a hug…
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If that was our family, there’d have been an argument when the bill came if someone refused to pay a share they’d agreed on. Very embarrassing the once, but it wouldn’t happen again.
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I admire you for telling your sister exactly how you felt, and I wondered why she couldn’t make the dinner arrangements with your dad. You are the official “go-between”. That was a nasty trick to pull with the dinner bill. I didn’t see one human face or hear one voice on Easter. Lucky me.
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Oh man. It is time. It is time for you to call the shots, say I want to see you, come over and help me cook and go for a walk, or I want to see you, let’s go to the beach, or, etc. If they can’t make it, you still go do the day. This is your life, this is it, and it is short. Heck with holidays, visit when you feel like it, when you can get together, somehow it feels more special then.
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