Friday, December 10, 2010

Tis the $eason

We had our company Christmas party last night. Although I work for the CDC, I'm a contractor, and so the contracting company is technically my employer. The food was good, the drinks flowed, and it was fun to chat with people. I had Mr W that night, so I didn't really think twice about bringing him with me. And he was content to read for an hour, and when the food still wasn't there, play games on my phone until the food got there and again after people had finished. All told, he sat there for three hours.

Now some people will argue that seeing kids play with electronic devices is somehow proof that "kids these days" can't sit down and have dinner with a bunch of grown ups. I'd counter that, in Mr W's case, he could, but he doesn't have to, he's got the device, so why not let him use it?

After we were done with dinner, the head of the company got up and said some words about how the year was, and how much they appreciated our work, and that sort of thing. He and the other two people from the company passed out a few awards, and then he got on this train of thought about how having a supportive spouse or partner really is the thing makes it possible for us all to do a good job. I was politely listening up to this point, but heard this, and turned to my friend and said quietly, "I disagree, strongly". I don't think he meant anything by his remarks, they were just off the cuff, but geez.

So he sits back down and we finish our dessert (cheesecake with bits of white chocolate in it, btw) and he says, from the head of the table, "I've never seen a boy behave so well at one of these things, so here is $50 to wish you a Merry Christmas", and hands my kid a $50 bill. Mr W looked up as soon as he started speaking, and at first didn't get it, but then stood up, took the money, and said thank you. He kept looking at me, saying, "Really?". I was surprised too, and told him that on our way out, I wanted him to go up to the guy, look him in the eye, shake his hand and say thank you again. And Mr W did, without hesitation, and I that makes me really proud of him. I'll take my mommy taxes of 10% to savings and 5% to charity, but he's still got a hefty chunk of fun money, and the possible ways to spend it will keep him occupied for a few days.

In other news, I did take my profile down on Match, and am taking a break. Going to turn my attention outward, to interact with real people. Not sure what I'm going to do this weekend, there's lots of holiday stuff going on, and Mr W's with his dad. I'm tempted to go down to the botanic garden in Denver and see the lights there, as Mr W would be ho-hum about it, and I think I'd really enjoy it.

6 comments:

  1. You deserve lots and lots and lots of credit for raising a great kid. It was nice that he was "rewarded" for exhibiting good behavior as that can't help but be a positive reinforcement. Gosh, even I felt proud reading about the incident! At the same time it sure is sad that his good behavior stands out so much that the "boss" would notice.

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  2. Really neat that the boss man rewarded good behavior! Does it carry over to how he treats his employees? Funny that we're so jaded (at least I am), that it took a bit for Mr W to believe that it was real. No catches or fine print. So cool!! Yer a good mom!

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  3. Way to go, Mom! And I like the Mommy taxes!

    Go see those pretty lights and enjoy!

    For some reason the bossman's comments remind me of a wedding I attended years ago. The pastor performing the ceremony scolded and admonished the bridal couple as well as those in attendance about the evils of divorce. Related to the matter at hand but oddly out of context.

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  4. I had a childless cousin once tell me that she thought our car DVD was preventing my kids from using their imagination, even though we only use it on trips an hour long or more. Why would he want to socialize with adults for hours? Adults are kinda boring.

    Also, I wouldn't have the foggiest idea of where to meet someone interesting, but my gut tells me fun events would be more promising than match.com. . .good for you!

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  5. Linda:
    You deserve to be proud of Mr. W, and I agree with the inappropriate nature of this man's off-the-cuff words. When I come across a child with manners and is well-behaved, I feel hopeful for our species. Good job!

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Hi, sorry to make the humans do an extra step.