no more hiding
This last weekend, we went to a dinner concert with my in-laws. A whole hour before the concert was set aside for people to eat, drink, and mingle. We got all dressed up, and my husband and I went a bit earlier than his parents so we could have a little time alone with the open bar. The very presence of alcoholic drinks apparently keeps my in-laws away from the eating and mingling.
When the parents showed up, I had just finished my drink, and my red-stained glass was still in front of me. My husband's cup was still half-full of Cabernet.
So, there it is. Not only do they know we drink (I think they suspected it before), but we drank in front of them. It was, hmm...no big deal. To us, anyway. I wouldn't know how they felt about it, seeing as they didn't say anything. And I doubt they ever will.
The reason I suspect they know we drink is because I was drunk and extra loud and expressive one evening in their hot tub a couple years ago. I was too drunk to realize how loud I was, and my mother-in-law looked at me a little weird, but I'm not sure how familiar she is with drunkenness. And I was too drunk to care and really be aware. She eventually left, and I regaled the rest of the group with exactly what I had had to drink that night, still in a loud voice. I didn't realize how loud until I left to get a glass of water, and could hear the hot tub group from the kitchen--the opposite side of the house. My in-laws bedroom is right next to the hot tub. So I'm sure they heard all about my drinks, but everyone in the tub with me had thought it so funny to see me drunk that they didn't try very hard to shush me.
The next time I got that drunk was this summer, and I drunk-dialed Sideon along with Christy and smoked a clove cigarette. Ahem. There, I admitted it. First and last cigarette.
8 comments:
That drunken hot tub story is LOL funny!! What makes it funnier for me (ie, not a very T TBM growing up) is that I had roughly the same experience -- but when I was like 15. It's funny to think about getting "busted by your parents" for drinking when you're all growed up and married and a parent.
Nice post, FTA - you tell a good story. :-)
Ha! I hadn't thought about it that way. Yep, I was 26 at the hot tub incident. Sheesh.
**laughing**
Ah HA! You drunk-dialed, but I drunk-answered, so we're even.
Oh - Wii challenge? Bring it on! Put up your dukes! (is that what they say in boxing? - I'm a bowler, not a boxer!)
I went through a period after 1984, when I smoked and drank and raised hell. I was far from my family, but my eldest brother, the head of our family, knew what was going on; I hid nothing.
His response was just, 'If you ever come to your senses, please come home.' No condemnation.
I did, and I have. But I learned a helluva lot during that time. I have a few stories that would completely smash my saintly image.
I think you would enjoy this post on my blog. About the prosletysing Church Ladies.
http://mai-sometimes.blogspot.com/2007/10/of-sheep-and-goats-and-lionesses.html
Excellent post. My TBM parents came to visit and offered to buy the food for dinner one evening from the grocery store. Hey, we NEEDED beer, right? They bought us beer - yea!
Congrats! I remember you mentioning getting drunk in front of your in laws and the thought made me chuckle then. Hearing all the details makes me laugh even harder!
I remember the first time I drank in front of my parents I was so mad at my husband (we weren't married at the time) because I just assumed he'd order some wine too, but no! So there I was, the lone lush at the table. It was a little awkward, there were some pointed stares and a few conversational lulls that I had to rush to fill, but ever since then it's been no biggie. There was all kinds of alcohol flowing during our wedding weekend, and no one batted an eye. At least not in my view. :)
mai- I think of lot of people have that stage. I don't consider it a mistake (unless it's extremely overboard), but rather a learning experience, a stage of development. Loved the church ladies story, btw.
hm-uk Beer! Wow! Sounds like you parents have really adjusted.
rolypoly- Congrats on the wedding! lol about drinking in front of your parents for the first time. DH drank a beer in front on my sister (you know the one) when she was visiting once. I don't know how much it surprised her, but I told her later that I drink, too, and that I'd prefer she not let the gossip get around to the family. While my siblings might be somewhat willing to adjust to that, my mother comes from a family of alcoholics and has plenty reason to despise drinking. I don't need to make her uncomfortable just so I can have a drink with dinner.
Great post, FtA. I like the loud hot tub incident.
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