20 years

My calendar entry for tomorrow says "high school reunion." It will be the big 20 year one, so yes, I am 38 for all you math whizzes out there. I was going to go. I thought it would be cool to see how everyone turned out. Every now and then I actually think back to my previous life and wonder where people are. Also, I thought it would be fun to shock people. What? You have 4 kids? You're a stay-at-home mom? You have 4 kids? Plus, I don't think I've aged too badly. My friends are always saying how my hair and clothes look exactly the same, and if that's not evidence then I don't know what is.

A few things changed my mind. First, the husband did not want to go. He said,"I won't know anyone there." Well, duh, we didn't go to the same high school. Then I tried to get the only friend from high school that I still keep in touch with to go with me. She said no because she had a baby 5 months ago and didn't want to show everyone her maternity weight. I just saw her last week, and she looks skinny as always. She claimed that none of her clothes fit, that she would have to go out and buy a brand new outfit plus shoes, and she just didn't want to go through that trouble when she had a fussy baby at home.

Which got me thinking. I don't have a decent outfit or shoes for this thing either, unless cargo pants (handy to stash sippy cups and diapers) and t-shirts are considered semi-formal. Even if I were to go out and buy something, I would be clueless as to what to go with. What would impress old classmates? Newer fashions that make you look like an exhibitionist pregnant woman? Or more conservative stuff that is completely out of date? This is why I always stick with just pants and t-shirts. After pondering about this off and on for an afternoon, I thought, what am I doing wasting so much time on this when I have to do the laundry/dishes/sweeping/everything.

The real clincher was finding out that the price of this reunion was $90 per person. Whereupon I immediately mentally calculated how many dance/piano/art classes could be had for the same amount. It turns out to be over a month's worth of dance classes for both daughters, two weeks of piano lessons, almost an entire soccer season, or almost an entire swimming season. So then the motherhood part of my brain took over and said "no way," especially since I would have had to spend even more on a new outfit.

It's just as well. Spending a whole evening saying the same thing over and over (I have 4 kids. I stay at home with them.) doesn't sound that fun. And the thought of running into my ex doesn't appeal to me. He was such a weirdo back then; it's best not to get in contact with that loser.

The new entry on my calendar for tomorrow says "birthday party." We're going to Chuck E. Cheese for my niece's 4th birthday. Hey, at least I don't have to get dressed up and pay for it.