I am not very good at executing surprises. I try; I fail and will try again. Sometimes it is the lack of interest. Occasionally I lose track of time and can’t commit to the surprise but more often it is because I don’t lie as well as I once did. I ruin it if asked a question head on or worse I forget that I was supposed to be keeping a secret. This is why surprising the kids and husband is on my list of 39 things to do before 40.
I had a rare opportunity to really surprise my son at school. My son loves when I go to school. He is still at an age that he loves me and wants me around. He has been begging me to volunteer at the school and I usually do but it is holiday parties. I can request those days. An odd day to volunteer falls under his dad’s responsibilities. He has a rotating shift and is able to do it.
I must admit that at the last after school event when the third person said to me, “Oh! YOU are Corey’s mom!” I knew it was time to show my face at a PTA meeting. As fate would have it, the school needed volunteers for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) day. Since I was not sure if I would be able to get the day off I did not tell my son. He gets emotional and does not handle disappointment well.
As it turned out I had a paid volunteer day left and got the day off. Of course, the third grade class was the very last to go which is probably for the best because he would have wanted to hang out with me the rest of the time.
I was responsible for communications and holograms. The two displays have absolutely nothing in common other then they needed adults to man them, I did both. I would explain how the first phone had to be connected by an operator and moved from that to how payphones worked. I would then herd them to the holograms and let them play with the lights that shinned on them.
I repeated my speeches for kindergarten through fifth grade students all. day. long. I have no voice and I longed for the silence. My favorite grade was the fifth graders who did not need much explanation and asked the best questions. The worse kids are hands down the first graders. Cute but oh boy are they energetic!
I was a little disappointed when I first got my assignment. I wanted something cool like 3D printing or gears. Boy, would my little man be surprised for that! But once I started telling the kids that there was a time before cell phones I knew this was the place for me.
I drank my Starbucks, checked in on FourSquare and instagramed a few photos while reminiscing about the rotary phone in parent’s room and how the family phone was bolted to the kitchen wall. They were amazed when I said that I could not leave the kitchen with the house phone. It was surreal to explain that I always had a quarter on me just in case I had to use a pay phone and they were just as astonished that if no one answered there was no other way to get a hold of my parents if they were not home.
Now it seems I am always available. The Husband would argue that I never answer my phone when he calls but I always call him back when I can. I don’t keep my phone attached to me. It is in my purse and more often than not I keep my purse in the trunk. I also hate to talk on the phone when driving. I know my limits and talking and driving are not one of my talents.
At work I help curate a twitter account and two pinterest accounts. Weirdly, they are on technology. I have a firm grasp on some things not so much on other areas but I work with two other guys who know what I don’t. And at home is where I write and blog and all of those tedious things that go along with blogging.
Unplug? I need to do it a lot more and surprises like today are one more reason to unplug, not completely but partially.
Guess what my third grader’s favorite exhibit was? If you guessed mine - you are right and boy was he surprised to see me. Mission completed.
