But he was home and not with Sly and Doris so it was a good weekend.
He spoke on the phone with Sly and Doris on Thanksgiving and then again on that Sunday because of course they expect a call on a holiday and then there is the regular Sunday call.
Am I the abnormal one for not calling my mother every week and talking to her for an hour about whatever? For not listening to her complain about how awful the entire world is and how I am her Only Joy (only she would never say that because I am not - my mom has many hobbies that keep her too busy to chat)? Am I a Bad Daughter for not calling my mom every week?
Or do Sly and Doris expect too much and should Primo put his foot down and tell them to leave him alone? (How I wish he would. I have tried to convince him but thus far have not been successful.)
Anyhow. He spoke to them about their Thanksgiving, which they spent with Stephanie, who is my ex sister in law - she was married to Primo's half brother Jack until a few years ago. Sly and Doris almost never have anything nice to say to her or about her yet she is a saint, going over to help them with household repairs and inviting them over for holidays.
Primo spoke to Sly and Doris on Sunday. Doris was telling him that Thanksgiving was nice. As she was speaking, Sly was in the background telling Doris "not to tell Primo about that thing because I don't want it to get back to Stephanie."
So of course Primo reported that odd conversation to me.
"Did they not say anything negative about Stephanie?" I asked.
"My dad said the turkey was dry. He said he could tell the second he walked into the house."
Which I didn't understand - how can you tell if the turkey is dry before you even see it or taste it? But Sly is a man of many talents and his power is legion.
"Is that what's not supposed to get back to Stephanie?"
"I don't think so," Primo said.
We mused. What could it be? Now we wanted to know.
I texted Stephanie.
Stephanie is a saint. Saint Stephanie -- patron saint of martyrs and kind people.
ReplyDeleteJen, no kidding! Stephanie is a lot nicer than I would be in her situation.
DeleteFrom my point of view, calling once a week and visiting once or twice a year would be easy peasy.
ReplyDeleteMy mother is - shall I say difficult - and I am expected to visit every Saturday and call twice during the week. (I made the error of returning to live in my home city after years away).
At Christmas I went with my husband to a different state to spend the time with his family. We were away six nights. During this time I called my mother three times and texted twice, but still I was moaned at because she was at home alone and I don't call often enough. She had spent all of Christmas Day with her grandson and his in-laws; she had spent most of the Friday after Christmas with a friend; she had spent the two days before Christmas out shopping.
Anyway you are so lucky that you get on with your mother. I had a lovely holiday with my in-laws and it made the contrast with my own mother seem even more pronounced.
KB, that is awful. Do you think parents who are like this are aware of how awful they are? Or are they so self centered that their behavior seems reasonable to them?
DeleteGD, she is totally self-absorbed, with a massive sense of entitlement.
ReplyDeleteIf I used the internet as a diagnostic tool, I believe I would reach a diagnosis of narcissistic personality disorder. But nobody believes what they read on the internet, right? :)