Friday Night

I've been looking for some way to recapture the magic of my holiday from 'life as I know it'.

I thought going to a movie on a Friday night would be the perfect answer. It is something that we never, ever do. Whenever we do see a movie, we always go to the early Sunday matinee and the outing blends into another ordinary Sunday. I thought we would make an event of this!

Well, so did everyone else in our city! First of all, the traffic at 6:30 at night astounded me. I am always amazed that there are so many people out and about. We normally don't travel during any of the rush hour traffic. Then, we got to the theatre. We lucked out and got (probably) the last free parking spot available within a mile and we walked toward the theatre. I couldn't believe the waves of people walking in the same direction that we were. We are fast walkers so we zoomed past several (to get a few spots closer in the line up). And what a line up!! We are unaccustomed to waiting, on our early Sunday matinee adventures. We took one look at each other and decided to leave (and we were so grateful that we hadn't paid for parking!).

Onward! We would try out the less popular movie theatre on the other side of the city. We still had a half hour to spare. Once again, the parking lot should have forewarned us. It was pretty full. But as we made our way into the mall, I remembered that most of these people would be shopping. Most ... but not all. The rest of them were lined up to go into the theatre.

I was thoroughly amazed by all of this. I thought people were cutting back on spending. I thought we were on the threshold of a very unknown financial future. I thought that the high prices of movies and snacks had diverted the crowds to watching movies in the comfort of their homes with their 'hi-tech digital/blue ray/surround sound/high definition/64 inch' TV screens (excuse my errors - I don't speak the language of hi tech very well). I thought more people went to the 'cheap theatre' (movies that have been out for quite a while - just before they go to DVD). But the line up was for the new, full-priced movies. The only reason that we go to the high priced movies, is because our Air Miles gift certificate covers our admission, 2 drinks and popcorn. Either 2 theatres full of people also have those gift certificates or else they just don't care about the cost of seeing a movie. But from all outward appearances, our economy appears to be thriving!

We were a little disappointed in our thwarted adventure. But I suggested we pick up some snacks and go back home and watch a movie. As we entered the store, Kurt wanted to check out the electronics section (he still has Christmas money to spend) and he ended up finding a DS Lite game that he has been looking for, for ages. And it was close to half the price of the last game he bought.

Kurt found a 'treasure' and in the end, we simply spent time together. Not in a movie theatre, but at home. Our cat could also relish in our family time - he just loves it when we are both in the same room. He acts intoxicated by the idea that 2 of his favorite people are sitting on the same couch and he can spread the wealth of his company equally between us (and when he is done, he nestles up snugly in between us and lavishes in the family time).

As nice as it is, to step outside your home for a mini-adventure ... the best moments of all, are family moments that are a little outside of the norm. No matter where you are.