A Proper Dinner

My ex mother-in-law once told me, “It takes two to tango.” When she said that, she was trying to justify her precious son’s awful behavior. I said, “You’re right. It does take two to tango. And I’m tired of tangoing by myself all night long while your son is out to dinner, movies, golf, happy hours and parties.”

She explained he didn’t want to come home because I didn’t make “proper dinners.” When I asked her what proper dinners were, she stated, “It would be a roast, with potatoes and a vegetable.” Never mind the fact that I’m a vegetarian; I decided to put her advice to the test.

“OK, I’m going to make a proper dinner tomorrow night, let him know about it in advance, and see if he comes home.” I went out and bought a roast, potatoes, and spinach for a salad. I told the ex I was going to make a roast for dinner tomorrow. He said he’d try to make it home.

I came home after a long day of work with a brutal commute. While I made the roast, I helped son with his school project, did laundry, vacuumed, and read a few pages in my textbook. The roast was done. I waited. No call, no show. Ex strolled in after midnight, having eaten at happy hour that he “HAD” to go to. Happy hour -- happy seven hours. No one’s counting!  I told him fine, the roast was in the fridge for tomorrow’s dinner.

The next night came and went. Ex came home at 1 a.m. He had an exhausting night at dinner and a late movie with his pals. After the third night, I brought the roast to my parents’ house. At least they pretended to appreciate it!

After all the hoopla, I realized I could have made a heap of lobster and fillet mignon -- the guy just wasn’t interested in coming home. Nothing I ever did made him want to come home. The roast was just another sign that things were not going well. It’s funny how fancy dinners don’t seem to matter when you actually care about someone. My husband’s perfectly happy with bread, salad, and tortellini for dinner.