Ah -- First World problems. The best to have, by far. I never forget I'm two generations away from poor immigrant grandparents who didn't always have "what to eat," as my suegra said.
Last night, I went to bed after watching a few episodes of "Hard Knocks" with Wifey. D2 and Jonathan got us into it -- Jonathan is a newly minted Fins fan -- I think as the result of his colleagues at his private equity company -- many lifelong Miami guys. Plus, it doesn't hurt that his firm's lawyers have killer seats, and are available -- he and D2 are headed to the Jets game today.
Anyway, we enjoy "Hard Knocks," mostly because of the Fins coach Mike McDaniel. He is such a classic nerd -- looks just like McLovin in "Superbad." And he knows it, too -- the thought of his tiny frame actually playing in the NFL is absurd, but he relates to the monsters he coaches, and they seem to adore him.
I went to sleep afterwards, and at my typical 4 am wake up to pee, noticed the internet was down. Wifey reported it went bad late at night, while she was watching an old movie. I figured it was the windy weather, and sure enough, ATT reported it was a big outage, but we'd be back by noon.
We were, and my Sonos popped on with my typical Sunday jazz.
Meanwhile, I got word my wine shipment had beed dropped at Walgreens, and I took my OCD self there to fetch it, along with some old man prescriptions. Wifey had said she wanted to bring balloons to D1's later -- it's our grandson's 4th!
Sure enough, Walgreens had a big mylar "Happy Birthday, " and I bought it, and when I returned to Villa Wifey, saw she was on the phone outside. I proudly pulled up, asked her to rise, so I could show off my purchase.
Still holding the phone , she said "Only ONE????" Yes, I replied, they were $4 each, and I figured one was enough to convey the birthday joy. "No -- they're ONE DOLLAR at the Dollar Store. You got that at Walgreens, didn't you???" she asked accusatorily, as if I had stolen the balloon from a little girl.
Oh well -- what are ya gonna do? She knows me well enough to know now that any requests to stop for more balloons will have as much chance of succeeding as a snowball in Miami.
Again -- First World problems.
But back to the reason for today: our first grandson. D1 loves an expression, as do I, that captures the essence of parenting: "The days are long, but the years are short."
And so it is. I remember well having babies and toddlers myself, and sometimes the days would drag and drag, but somehow three and a half decades have passed.
Our Little Man is amazing -- hilarious, smart as a whip -- not a "background child," as Wifey says.
He drives golf balls with amazing ability. The other day, I had him pick up a plastic baseball bat, and pitched him a few. He smacked them all -- one nearly taking out his Grandpa's mostly vestigial cojones.
He brings us so much joy, and his favorite color, pink, will be on his favorite food, cake, today.
He is ALL Boy, and yet loves pink. That's typical him -- full of surprises -- joyful ones.
Tomorrow night there are big plans. Michael, the amazing young lawyer and friend, is taking me to a Heat game. I haven't been since The Plague, I don't think. I mentioned this to D2 and Jonathan, and they were invited to the game, too, with friends Tara and Robbie.
Well, some Dads in the USA might have just let that pass, but not this one. So the plan is to meet at my favorite Italian place, Il Gabbiano, for a pregame dinner and drinks. I joke that Il Gabbiano is Italian for "Expensive Italian food but worth it," and it's true. So tomorrow night ought to be a fine one.
And when I get home -- I can watch highlights on Sports Center -- thanks Uverse!
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