Pancakes, Party and P... er, Vagina Monologues



This weekend was an odd assortment of events. We'll start with a review of my Kiwanis club's pancake breakfast. After working Friday night, I awoke Saturday at 5:40 a.m. Made it to the church at 6 a.m., where I helped everyone get set up for the pancake breakfast.

Then we waited. In the first hour we were open, we had three diners. And about 15 or so Kiwanians running the thing. Now, it doesn't take too many people to run a pancake breakfast. And since the club has been doing this for years, everyone has a silently assigned role. So I'm pretty far down on the depth chart. Since we had hardly anyone show up, and because I worked late the night before, my dad told me to go home at 8:00. I needed more sleep, so I obliged. Came to find out that at around 8:30, the people started pouring in. Including Pat , who figured he'd surprise me... Guess he was the one surprised, as I was no longer there! Anyway, I'm told we made about $400 or so... not bad for a "free" breakfast!

After dad got home, Jenny & I picked him up and went to my sister's place for a birthday party. Ian, my nephew, turns 5 next week, but Verna had a conflict, so we celebrated Saturday.

Sigh. Family events always bring together an interesting assortment, don't they? Attending this one were John & Elsie (Ian & Caitlyn's paternal grandparents), Jenny & me, my dad, my sister of course, my mother and my ex-girlfriend and her husband.

Yes, you read that right. Things are pretty tense between my mother and me right now, so that was awkward enough. But my ex-girlfriend and her husband? Brief back story: XGF & I dated for almost two years, during which Ian was born. Because things were very serious between us at the time, Verna asked us both to be Ian's baptismal sponsors. Even though we broke up more than four years ago, she's still part of Cait & Ian's lives. Why we broke up? She cheated on me with the guy who is now her husband. So to have both of them there is quite awkward for both Jenny & me. Add to that the fact that XGF is now pregnant. So shortly after we arrived, there's my sister, Elsie and my mother talking with her about pregnancy and babies and motherhood, etc. Meanwhile, Jenny & I are in the room... we're not pregnant, of course, but isn't this a little too surreal? Why my family members can't seem to grasp that XGF CHEATED ON ME and that that may possibly, I don't know, MAKE THINGS AWKWARD FOR ME AND MY WIFE is beyond me. It's as if they don't care about what happened! Yes, it's been more than four years, but am I not allowed to think it's strange and a little unhealthy for her to be so involved? And am I not allowed to be annoyed that my family treats her like she's the one who married in, not my actual wife?

Anyway, back to the party-- Ian's a Star Wars freak, so he got lots of Star Wars-related toys, including a Millennium Falcon, another light saber and various spaceships. Jenny & I gave him some Hot Wheels stuff, which was ignored at first because it wasn't Star Wars. Cait urged me to start assembling the Hot Wheels track... then Ian took some interest! Jenny assembled one of the other Hot Wheels items, too. I'm told that after we left, the track was bombed by the Millennium Falcon. Ah, well.

Saturday night was spent at a performance of The Vagina Monologues at UTD. By the way, if you missed my LJ post the other night, here's how not to write a headline about such an event. Bottom line: GREAT show. Read Pat's and Leila's blogs for some pretty good takes on the performance. I'm a little concerned that some of the actresses are a little too comfortable with their bodies, though. Several ill-advised short skirts and unflattering spandex outfits. We thought one of them was pregnant, and I was thinking that it was great for her to show off her belly like that. Pregnant? Not so much. Eesh.

Posted: Mon - February 28, 2005 at 02:07 PM          

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