Date night

It's supposed to be Wordless Wednesday, but I slept for several consecutive hours last night (for the first time in a week) and awoke full of words. So consider this evidence that I'm evolving... I've always been such a blind rule follower.

All of my best reader-friends have been recommending the Steig Larsson books. I bought The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and started reading it three times, but just couldn't get into it. Then I watched the movie and was enthralled - it seems my attention span is better suited to film than literature these days. It was available on Netflix streaming, the current film venue of choice for my limited and largely solitary leisure life.

I used to love to go to movies by myself during my pre-family days in Washington, D.C. Since I moved to Tampa and married a man who loathed seeing movies in theaters, I gave that up. In retrospect, I realize that I could have continued going by myself, I just didn't. So when I saw that part two of the trilogy was playing at our local independent theater last week, it instantly became one of those things I had to do. I have had pretty good luck lately when that feeling envelops me, so I'm starting to trust the instinct.

I asked Pickle to babysit, something she hadn't done except when I was running a quick errand. She's almost 14 and I was only going to be a few miles away, so it was time to trust. I prepared dinner for the girls in advance. I made sure I had cash and figured out where to park. I totally felt like I was preparing for a date.

Does that sound crazy? Maybe it is, I have no way of knowing.

I do know that I felt good walking into the absolutely beautiful old theater - peaceful, powerful, independent. Happy. Completely myself.

There's lots of advice for married couples to have date nights, to reconnect with each other and without the children. The same advice should apply to sole parents. It is so easy to get lost, to become mired in getting through each day. To lose yourself in the grind of packing lunches, washing clothes, walking the dog, cleaning the bathrooms, driving the car. But I don't think it serves me or my girls well to be that person, the long-suffering widowed mom who is constantly overwhelmed and just gets through each day.

I had a great time on my first date. I think I'd like to see her again.