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Monday, June 2, 2008

Me. Me me me me me. Me me. Me.

Does the word "me" look weird to anyone else now?

I've always considered myself to be a thoughtful, considerate person, but since Jack was born, I've noticed that I am actually incredibly self-centered. This is a particularly startling revelation given the timing; usually one would expect a person to become more selfless after becoming a mother, but, then, I've never been one to follow a trend.

It's not like I'm walking around completely ignoring other people or anything, it's just that, when, in the course of small talk someone asks me how Jack is doing, I tell them. I tell them he's fantastic, he's so smart, he did this really funny thing yesterday, yada yada yada, and - whoops! Gotta go. Then, as I'm walking away, I realize that at no point did I ask this person how HER son is doing. Her son who is the same age as Jack.

But here's the thing: I think I do this when people ask me about other things as well, like, say, home renovations. Or work. Or any other of the myriad of things I'm interested in, but which - let's be frank - the people with whom I'm making small talk are not.

I must, therefore, have been doing this for years. But now I am aware of it, and have been training myself to take an interest in others. Thus, small-talk conversations with me are now more along the lines of, "Jack? He's great! He's so smart! He did this really funny thing yesterday where he.... but how's YOUR son?" And I hardly talk about the kitchen at all!

Speaking of the kitchen, we are moving into the final stages. The caulking is pretty much done and the nail holes are mostly filled and sanded. So tonight we need to finish patching up a few spots on the walls that got damaged, and start polyurethaning the doors. The poly is apparently going to take us at least two nights because each side needs two coats, but if all goes well, we will be ready to paint by this weekend. And painting is the last step before putting it all back together!

I promise to post a picture when it is complete.

3 comments:

Becca said...

I have had the same thought. I now make an effort to ask lots of questions of other people. But it's not easy. Sometimes it works sometimes it doesn't. Can't wait to see the kitchen!

Anonymous said...

Does this mean you settled on paint colors?

You always remember to ask me about Asher, and about how I am, and about all the important things. But perhaps this is because we do most of our chatting via email and IM? PERHAPS YOU ARE DIFFERENT IN PERSON... WE SHALL SEE.

Dr. Maureen said...

I have indeed settled on paint colors, but I am saving them for the BIG REVEAL which will be soon. Oh, so tantalizingly soon.

I'm really only self-centered when I'm making small talk; I'm less of a jerk when I'm having actual conversations of substance.