And They’re Off
My parents left yesterday afternoon to drive to SF and then fly to New Zealand. After a couple of weeks there, they’ll jump over to Sydney, Australia for a week. They’re coming back on July 14th.
My parents can complain about the most amazing things. For the last two weeks, I’ve listened to my mother simultaneously bitch about the fact that it’s going to be winter down under, and that it’s hot in Sacramento. (My mother can complain about any type of weather at all, and does just about every single day.) She complained about how much of a pain it is to pack for a 3-week trip, and about how being away will set her back with regard to preparing for fall’s semester classes. Honestly!
My father splurged on himself for this trip. (You see, my parents go somewhere every summer for 3-4 weeks and they take turns choosing the destination. This time, Dad got to pick.) Dad decided that while in New Zealand, he would go hunting for “red stag.” Dad’s been deer hunting many times in his life, and as far as I know, he’s never bagged one. I grew up knowing that “deer hunting” was a euphemism for going to the woods with the guys and getting drunk for four days. Anyway, he’s suddenly got grand visions of shooting this regal animal and shipping a rack of antlers home to hang on a wall somewhere. I know for a fact that my mother will not allow him to hang antlers on the walls of her home.
When Dad first booked this hunting adventure, he called me; he was really excited and blurted out how much it cost. I nearly threw up when I heard the figure. He was giddy as hell and sort of tickled that he was spending that much dough on a hunting trip for himself. All I could think of was how we were down to the last green thing in the pantry—canned green beans—and how Ian’s payday was a week away. I told him, “Dad, I don’t want to know how much your vacation is going to cost.” I felt a little better when he said, “What if I never have this chance again?”
So for a while, Dad was excited. But as the day of departure got nearer, he started to get stressed out, starting working crazy hours to meet deadlines and satisfy clients, started worrying about how his lazy staff would merely phone it in the entire time he would be gone. Dad told me two days ago that he wasn’t really looking forward to going to New Zealand and Australia. Jeezus!
Like I said, they can complain about anything. And yet, they joyfully packed up their shit and left town. They technically arrive, with time changes, on June 23, even though they left California on June 21.
I’m going to miss them. Lemme know if you want to go swimming. 😉
June 22, 2006 at 5:04 pm
oooh! oooh! Me!
June 22, 2006 at 5:17 pm
Come on up to Sac whenever.