A week ago, on Gary’s birthday, I called him to see if he wanted some acknowledgment of his day. We have this debate every year. Gary feels that since he is celebrated and pampered every day of his birthday month, any celebration on the actual day is moot. Every day in March is his birthday. I was not raised with the "birthday month" hogwash tradition and I need to mark the day.
"Let's go out to dinner," I begged him. "Let's go to that place where you had Piglet, the pork chop."
"Okay, sure," Gary sighed. "I'll shave."
Five minutes later, he called me back, all pouty.
"It's MY birthday and I don't want to go out. I want you to come home and bring me Chinese food."
Bringing home dinner is not a celebration, I thought. Bogus.
So instead of just bringing home Chinese, I zipped over to the bookstore and bought him a copy of Salt Fat Acid Heat, so he doesn't start thinking he can get away with ordering me to bring home Chinese every night. To counter his no-recipe cooking style, I also got myself a copy of America's Test Kitchen's Giant Compendium of Every Recipe Ever Plus the Complete Winners of Every Food and Equipment Challenge Oh My God (and if you are intrigued buy it there on Amazon where it is essentially half the price.)
Driving to get the Chinese I noticed a newly-opened Mellow Mushroom pizza parlor -- the same place we enjoyed in Asheville, NC. So he got a book, a pizza, and Chinese food for his birthday. Everything he never asked for.
Happy birthday month to Gary!
I am personally a firm believer in Birthday Person Getting What Birthday Person Actually Wants, even if that is *oatmeal* for goodness' sake, but getting at what Birthday Person Actually Wants (rather than Birthday Person Trying To Be Low-Key, etc.) is sometimes difficult.
(but yes, I'd want to mark the day, too. Which would give me problems if Birthday Person really did just want regular oatmeal, sigh.)
Posted by: KC | March 27, 2019 at 10:35 AM
KC - well, he’s pretty good at expressing what he wants most days. Never wants oatmeal.
Posted by: TheQueen | March 27, 2019 at 10:37 PM
It's a beautiful thing, being married to someone you don't have to second-guess all the time! (I mean, it's a beautiful thing when it's beautiful. My spouse is not excessively loud as to preferences, so it's just plain lovely, but I could well imagine an expressive spouse potentially being a bit *too* expressive...)
Pity about the oatmeal, though; it really is quite healthy. :-)
Posted by: KC | March 28, 2019 at 12:28 PM
KC - yep, we both make a point of saying exactly what we want. I don’t know if it’s a beautiful thing - it’s an efficient thing.
Posted by: TheQueen | March 28, 2019 at 08:33 PM