the idea of my having a continuing relationship with Brant that she needed to stake out her territory. On the other hand, her behavior had been so appalling that I am hard-pressed not to feel justified in having a little amusement at their expense.
I open another bottle of wine, and Paige and I watch the last twenty-five minutes of the penguin movie. When it’s over, she asks me what I think.
“Well, first of all,” I say, “these are not Jewish birds.”
Paige starts to laugh. “Why not?”
“Really? With the walking seventy miles over the ice, and no food and the wind chill a hundred and eighty below zero and the egg on the feet and it could fall and it could freeze and then there’s a two-day window where the mother has to get back if she hasn’t been eaten by a leopard seal. The poor father, four months in the cold, no food, and one little piece of phlegm to sustain the kid, if it actually hatches. I mean, honestly.”
“But it’s so heartwarming. And it’s so sweet, their relationship with each other,” says Paige. “And it’s amazing, their ability to survive.”
“Look, I’m trying not to be a cynic about this. And I’m trying to get past one of my least favorite things, which is the strange desire for filmmakers to anthropomorphize animals. I mean, ten minutes on the mating ritual as if it’s some nightclub, and everybody’s finding the perfect dance partner. I could even get past that. And Lord knows I would listen to Morgan Freeman read out of a phone book for two hours most happily. But I’m going to be honest here. I think these may be the second-dumbest creatures on the face of the earth.”
“So which are the first?” Paige asks.
“That’s easy,” I say, “the goddamn filmmakers!”
She snorts wine through her nose.
She laughs, and I start laughing, too. I know that I’m taking out some of my frustration with Brant on the poor penguin movie.
We chitchat for a little while until Paige starts to yawn. “Sorry, Boss Lady,” she says, “I’m fading.”
“Me, too.”
“I should probably go home.”
I walk her to the door and then go back inside to clean up the wineglasses. Maybe I was wrong. Maybe there is a creature dumber than the penguins and the filmmakers. If there is, my ex-husband is definitely in the running.
We Are Family
Nothing is more important than family. Whether it is the family you
were born into or the family you create around you with your good
friends, that support system is essential to a good life. But two of the
most difficult things to manage can be your family’s involvement in
your relationship and the relationship you have to your lover’s family.
There are all sorts of pitfalls to be aware of, and family can often be a
significant factor in relationships going awry. If one partner’s family
doesn’t approve, it can bring enough tension into the relationship as to
be detrimental to good communication. And respecting the feelings,
traditions, and needs of both families is the only way to keep your partnership
strong.
—From a speech delivered by Jodi Spingold at the Scottsdale JCC Jewish Book Club Girls’ Night Out event, November 2006
We have reserved the private dining suite at One Sixty Blue for dinner, to celebrate Jill and Hunter’s engagement and meet his family. Aunt Ruth and Aunt Shirley and I got here a little early to ensure that everything is set up to our exacting standards. This meant that within ten minutes of our arrival, Aunt Ruth was delivering a lengthy set of directions to the waitstaff, and Aunt Shirley had weaseled her way into the kitchen to meet the chef. I’m taking a quiet moment in the sitting room attached to the dining area to gather my thoughts.
Jill hasn’t said too much about Hunter’s family. She’s only met them twice before, and even then just for short weekends. All she has said is that they are pretty conservative, sort of B-list Philadelphia Main Line types, not gazillionaires, but
I open another bottle of wine, and Paige and I watch the last twenty-five minutes of the penguin movie. When it’s over, she asks me what I think.
“Well, first of all,” I say, “these are not Jewish birds.”
Paige starts to laugh. “Why not?”
“Really? With the walking seventy miles over the ice, and no food and the wind chill a hundred and eighty below zero and the egg on the feet and it could fall and it could freeze and then there’s a two-day window where the mother has to get back if she hasn’t been eaten by a leopard seal. The poor father, four months in the cold, no food, and one little piece of phlegm to sustain the kid, if it actually hatches. I mean, honestly.”
“But it’s so heartwarming. And it’s so sweet, their relationship with each other,” says Paige. “And it’s amazing, their ability to survive.”
“Look, I’m trying not to be a cynic about this. And I’m trying to get past one of my least favorite things, which is the strange desire for filmmakers to anthropomorphize animals. I mean, ten minutes on the mating ritual as if it’s some nightclub, and everybody’s finding the perfect dance partner. I could even get past that. And Lord knows I would listen to Morgan Freeman read out of a phone book for two hours most happily. But I’m going to be honest here. I think these may be the second-dumbest creatures on the face of the earth.”
“So which are the first?” Paige asks.
“That’s easy,” I say, “the goddamn filmmakers!”
She snorts wine through her nose.
She laughs, and I start laughing, too. I know that I’m taking out some of my frustration with Brant on the poor penguin movie.
We chitchat for a little while until Paige starts to yawn. “Sorry, Boss Lady,” she says, “I’m fading.”
“Me, too.”
“I should probably go home.”
I walk her to the door and then go back inside to clean up the wineglasses. Maybe I was wrong. Maybe there is a creature dumber than the penguins and the filmmakers. If there is, my ex-husband is definitely in the running.
We Are Family
Nothing is more important than family. Whether it is the family you
were born into or the family you create around you with your good
friends, that support system is essential to a good life. But two of the
most difficult things to manage can be your family’s involvement in
your relationship and the relationship you have to your lover’s family.
There are all sorts of pitfalls to be aware of, and family can often be a
significant factor in relationships going awry. If one partner’s family
doesn’t approve, it can bring enough tension into the relationship as to
be detrimental to good communication. And respecting the feelings,
traditions, and needs of both families is the only way to keep your partnership
strong.
—From a speech delivered by Jodi Spingold at the Scottsdale JCC Jewish Book Club Girls’ Night Out event, November 2006
We have reserved the private dining suite at One Sixty Blue for dinner, to celebrate Jill and Hunter’s engagement and meet his family. Aunt Ruth and Aunt Shirley and I got here a little early to ensure that everything is set up to our exacting standards. This meant that within ten minutes of our arrival, Aunt Ruth was delivering a lengthy set of directions to the waitstaff, and Aunt Shirley had weaseled her way into the kitchen to meet the chef. I’m taking a quiet moment in the sitting room attached to the dining area to gather my thoughts.
Jill hasn’t said too much about Hunter’s family. She’s only met them twice before, and even then just for short weekends. All she has said is that they are pretty conservative, sort of B-list Philadelphia Main Line types, not gazillionaires, but
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