The Game

Every night I play the same game.  It is not a game I play willingly.  It is a game I am forced into in order to maintain my sanity.  The masterminds behind this game are pure genius.

It goes like this.  I start in the family room and carry everything that is strewn about the family room back to its place in the kitchen, sunroom, dining room, or bedroom.  And then I go to the sunroom and carry everything back to the kitchen, dining room, family room or bedroom.  And then, it's off to the kitchen to carry everything back to the sunroom, dining room, family room or bedroom.  Repeat.

You get the picture.  I do see these kids play all day.  And it is not apparent that instead of playing, what they are actually doing is carrying out a very elaborate and well planned scheme where they strategically move everything from one room to the other.  And rest assured, they never carry everything from the family room to the dining room.  That would be too easy.  Instead they make sure to evenly (or not) distribute all of the junk in the family room (or whatever room) between every remaining room in our house.

I am convinced they sneak out from their rooms at night and secretly watch to see how they can improve their strategy for the next night.  C whispers in E's ear: Drat!  She finished in 16 minutes.  Tomorrow we need to be sure to carry more stuff from downstairs upstairs.

I don't do this every night.  Some nights when I'm bone tired I collapse on the couch and silently will Brian to see all of the stuff strewn all throughout the house and decide that perhaps he wants to partake in the game.  And then I get slowly more and more angry because Brian is NOT READING MY MIND and IS NOT SENSING how angry I am becoming.  And then I look at whatever Brian has emptied out from his pockets onto the dining room table and the papers and bills he has left in a Hansel and Gretel path behind him and it hits me -- HE IS IN LEAGUE WITH THE KIDS.

It's true.  I promise.