If I was to mention Golden Corral, I'm guessing the first thing people would think of is endless supplies of barely edible cuisine that is overpriced. Now, if I was to mention Golden Corral at 4:00 pm, I'm guessing people would have close to the same thought as before. However, there is one slight difference: the early bird special.
Ah yes, the early bird special. Known as that special time when seniors can head to Golden Corral for a discounted rate AND not have to wait at the buffet line. I bring up this concept of the early bird special because whenever I look at my son, I know that we are raising someone who would fit in perfectly at the Golden Corral's early bird special.
Bethany and I didn't come to this realization quickly. In fact, as I watched Ethan dance around the kitchen this evening in his overalls, it really hit me for the first time: our son is one going on 80. There are multiple reasons for us to feel this way which I'll share.
One of the first, and most obvious, reasons why Ethan is an old man at heart is due to his schedule. As soon as 5:00 rolls around each night, Ethan finds himself wanting dinner immediately. If it doesn't happen, he will get a little cranky. He also wants to be in bed by no later than 7:00 every night so that his 5:30 wake-up time is not compromised in the least. After all, if one isn't up before the sun, is there any reason to even get out of bed? Not if you're Ethan!
The next reason as to why Ethan is an old man at heart lies squarely with his attire. His two favorite pieces of apparel in the entire world are his gray Royals cap and Ellie's purple cowboy boots. Since we purchased that Royals cap back in the spring, Ethan has latched onto it like no other. Anywhere we go, it's a near certainty that Ethan will have his cap sitting square on his head. As for the cowboy boots, even though we don't let him wear them out of the house, it doesn't stop him from putting them on and parading around approximately sixteen times a day. When you add the cap and boots to the overalls Ethan frequently sports, it's easy to see why we refer to our son as a little old man at heart.
There is one more trait that Ethan shares with many an old man. That would be his love of the local news. I'm not sure how it started or why but whenever a television is turned on in Ethan's presence, he immediately begins pointing at the screen and chanting "News!" over and over again. I kid you not, the chants will not cease until we finally change the channel to a newscast. At that point, Ethan will happily crawl up on the couch next to me, sit down and happily take in all of the day's events.
Actually I lied. There is yet another trait Ethan shares with many an old man. That being his love of watching people mow. He will seriously stand at the window and watch someone have their lawn mowed for as long as possible. He's even been known to point at grass when he thinks it's becoming too long and simply say "Mow." Now if an interest in the lawn care of one's neighborhood isn't a trait many old men share, then I don't know what is.
Given Ethan's propensity for acting like a senior citizen, I have to say that I can't wait until he decides to schedule his (high school) senior photos outside the Golden Corral during the Early Bird Special. Maybe we can even find a photographer who'll snap shots for food although that might not be much cheaper the more I think about it. We'll just have to wait and see, I guess. #DaddyWrite
No comments:
Post a Comment