Threat

So back in September I mentioned how my Dad was threatening to come for Sophie’sbirthday and I put a link to the last time he visited which was all kinds of awful. (here it is again, titled very appropriately, “Crushed”).

I had a talk with him in early October and told him that we needed to set some ground rules and that the last visit was less than ideal and that he could not just whole himself up in the basement if he comes to visit again. He acted as I expected: Like a child: he was defensive and then got pouty and didn’t call me for five days. But in the end, he didn’t come.

Now he is threatening to come for Christmas, just a short trip: Christmas Eve or Day to the 27^th. And Sophie could care less – and why should she? He barely paid her a lick of attention last time which is unbelievable to me because she is honest-to-God one of my absolute favorite people to hang out with. She is fun! And funny! And a complete sweetheart. Anyway, I was talking to O Jeffery! about this threat and he was like, “Well, what are you going to say to him?” And I told him that if he comes and he pulls the same crap he did last time, I will have to lay down the law. And I told Jeffery exactly what I would tell my dad. Of course, it was easy to say what I wanted to say to Jeffery; it won’t be so easy to say the same to my dad in person.

I did warn him though that my mom probably would NOT be making a big Christmas dinner; it is just too hard for her which is why we went out to eat on Thanksgiving. You know – have to set up his expectations from the get-go and I don’t want to hear any bitching about it later. He thinks he can cook and always brags about that so why doesn’t HE cook US a big Christmas meal instead of expecting my mom to wait on him hand-and-foot like she usually does?

Ugh, family. You can’t pick them; you’re just stuck with them.