Missing the Water Cooler

There are some things that I really miss about going to work. Or even just taking the kids to public school. It's those little moments when you would pass another co-worker or another mom down the hall and you'd stop and have some idle chit-chat. I really miss that.

Here's a conversation that I so desperately needed to have with another female the other day....

The scene is me walking down the hall to my office and passing a co-worker:

Me: (Stopping). Hey, did you know that Rick Springfield is 58 years old?

Co-Worker: I know! I saw him on Oprah the other day.

Me: Yeah! And there he is being all Rick Springfield and the guy's 58 years old. How did he get to be 58? That's, like, my dad's age.

Co-Worker: I know! What's the world's coming, too? It seems like just yesterday that I was kissing his poster's on my wall.....

Me: Yeah, and now he's practically a senior citizen.

Both of us are stunned into silence.

Me: But he sure looked good.

Co-Worker: Sho' did.

Me: See ya.

Co-Worker: Later

Now, that's a conversation that I needed to have. Instead, this is the conversation that I had...

Sim gets home from work and heads to the kitchen:

Me: Hey, did you know that Rick Springfield is 58?

Sim: Who?

Me: Rick Springfield. You know, "Jessie's Girl".

Sim: Who'd name a girl Rick?

Me: (Sighing) No. He sang "Jessie's Girl". Remember?

Sim: Oh yeah. What about him?

Me: Well, he was on Oprah today, and he's, like, my absolute childhood crush... and he's 58!!!

Sim: So.

Me: Yeah, but I can't have a crush on someone who's 58. That's my dad's age!! That's just gross.

Sim: I have a crush on Joan Collins.

Me: Okay. Yeah... but... you're just... odd. This is Rick Springfield we're talking about. Rick Springfield!!

Sim: What's for dinner?

Me: Okay. Dude. Do you get this at all? It's just that I'm a bit stunned to know that all these years, Rick Springfield is MY DAD'S AGE. He could be my dad! He could be YOUR DAD.

(Pause) Hey, can you imagine if Rick Springfield was your dad? Helloooooo, Mr. Thomas!

Sim: (Staring blankly at me)

Me: (Feeling defeated). Well, all I'm saying is how do I live in a world where Rick Springfield got to be 58 years old?

Sim: You know, you should be lucky you live in a world where Rick Springfield can be 58 years old. Did you know that the life expectancy in Zambia used to be 58? Do you know what it is now? 37. People my age are dying everyday in Zambia. You should be grateful you live where you live because in other parts of the world, your Rick Springfield would be dead.

(Silence)

Me: We're having spaghetti.

Sim: I'll set the table.

So, that folks, is the real reason I miss working and feel lonely homeschooling. He doesn't care that Eva Longoria cut her hair. Or that New Kids on the Block tried to make a comeback this summer. Or that Ingo Rademacher - who plays Jax on General Hospital - just had a baby boy and named it Peanut. How on earth is that kid ever going to get a girlfriend with a name like Peanut? And who am I going to discuss this stuff with? Because I bet a million dollars that if it isn't on NPR then Sim doesn't know about it.

But, oh, I love him so much. He's got such a good heart. He's so amazingly smart, and he fills his head with all sorts of important issues - like social injustice, poverty, and the healthcare crisis. The only reason he knows that People.com exists is because I dragged him to the computer last winter to show him pictures of Britney Spears' bald head.

He certainly keeps me grounded, that's for sure.

Anyway, the one-sided Rick Springfield conversation wasn't all a loss. It turned into a discussion about Zambia which then turned into a fruitful conversation about poverty with the kids over supper - and we had a discussion about what we should do, as citizens of the world, to help make a difference.

Man, our kids will be so well-educated and good-hearted. They'll be able to kick butt at Jeopardy... not only in the World Events section, but the Pop Culture one, too.

Anyway, that is the reason why a blog called "Recovering Noah" - that is meant to be about our family's life with autism... has turned into a bit of a smorgasbord. Because I so totally have to have a bit of watercolor chit-chat every now and again.

So, I'm just putting it out there. Rick Springfield is 58 years old. I am shocked. He's still looking mighty fine. So, there. There it is. I got it out of my system. I feel a lot better now.

Be sure to watch this space for more intellectually stimulating blog posts, such as...

" Did Tommy Howell's movie career go down the drain once he changed his name to C. Thomas Howell?"

"Does Kirk Cameron maintain the secret to the Fountain of Youth?"

and

"Was John Taylor really the cutest member of Duran Duran?" (For the record, he was.)