That was the question from my youngest son this weekend. Granted, it came after his request to go somewhere that we were not able to go; however, the question has been rattling ’round my brain since Saturday afternoon.
Chargin' up the wii-motes. Photo by Russ Neumeier
The question – “Dad, why do you work so much?” came as we were driving from one of the many stops we had that day. We’d been to a few places, had a few more errands to run, and all my son wanted to do was to go fishing at a pond near our house. The question came as he asked to go fishing (having just passed the pond while driving in the van) and after my response listing the many reasons both Saturday and Sunday would not work for fishing.
I had many reasons:
- Your Mom needs to finish the editing of her book.
- I’ve got to take down the trampoline.
- I’ve got to mow the yard.
- You need to do your chores.
- We have to pick up your brother.
- It’s fall, and the bushes need to be cut back.
- The garden is done and needs to be tilled.
- We get to go to Tony Hawk’s Stand Up for Skate Parks next weekend in California.
The list wasn’t necessarily that long, but in my mind it justified why we were working so hard.
Needless to say both Saturday and Sunday were a blur. We had so much to do and so many places to go…
…and yet – “Dad, why do you work so much?” bugged me…
Monday came and the typical early-morning rush to get ready for school (and work – and GeekMom’s looming editorial deadline) moved us along almost without thought. That night, while Mom did take some time away and go out, I was with the kids.
The question still beating in the back of my brain.
So we just hung out Monday night – trust me, I’ve got tons of things to do (both for work and things around the house)…but we hung out. We watched a bit of TV, tried some of the games from Minute To Win It, and then we played Wii for a bit (some Game Party 3, some Wii Sports)… we laughed, we groaned when we biffed a section of the game, we cheered when someone did a fantastic move, and we laughed – a lot. The evening flew by.
All the work was forgotten…just for a couple hours… Tuesday I know I’m gonna have Wii shoulder from the Game Party racquetball we played…but it will have been worth it. Even with a to-do list that is never ending.
Oh, and this weekend, with the youngest son’s help we did get the trampoline down…but the lawn has yet to be mowed. And I’ll tell the neighbors (should they ask – although I doubt they’ll care) I had more important things to do.
