Out to Lunch

The other day my Nephew and his Friend stopped by for lunch.  Nephew had been making noises about "taking me to lunch" for a couple of weeks now so it wasn't that big of a surprise. In case you don't know his idea of "taking me to lunch" involves me driving and paying for it and listening to his plea for money.  I've been putting him off because I find his company and predictably tedious. However, this lunch was rather eye-opening for me.

Both kids are tickling 30 now and have been buddies on and off since grade school. I totally enjoyed the Friend's company. It was good talking to him. He talked of getting a better job and getting his life on track. We related various stories of car repairs and making decisions like buy groceries or fix the car. We had a long conversation about how many hours one had to work to be able to buy an $800 cell phone and all the other, better things $800 could buy. Friend and I discussed the value of getting a college education and how he could get back into the school I work at. We talked about friends who passed away.  You know, we discussed life.

Meanwhile Nephew sat off to the side making random movie quotes, commenting about the life of a Jedi, and talking about the upcoming Star Wars movie. Nephew asked me multiple times for money to buy a Jedi robe from a Halloween store. Basically he was the like annoying little kid trying to get attention from the grown-ups.  He was so out of touch and didn't even try to fit in.

Of course, Nephew has no practical experience on what we discussed. He has never held a job, never paid bills, never had to be accountable for his actions, and wouldn't know a responsibility if it bit him in the arse. However, he tried a stint in college and has had friends and family member pass away but yet he couldn't get his mind off the fantasyland of movies and Jedis and hitting me up for money long enough to join in our conversation.

As I said, it was eye-opening for me. I've known the kid was out of touch with the real world for quite some time but I had no idea how far out there he was. Nephew can no longer even relate to his own friend anymore. He's truly out to lunch.

The Fine Print: Stamps by Tim Holtz, school themed papers by the Paper Cut, apple punch by Martha, and apple brad from my stash. That cut is called a tri-shutter! Yes, I had help remembering that name.