We have been wasting Ian's time, but luckily there's light at the end of the cable.

Last Sunday, our neighbors held a summer pool-party, and we squandered a great deal of time there.  They're Uruguayan, so it wasn't surprising that the extended family was outgoing and welcoming, and that the food was really good.  And of course, there was a pool, and it was an intensely hot weekend.  I only went into the pool when one or more of the children was in it, but with the three of them, I probably spent an hour or two in it.  By all superficial appearances, it would look like a good time, an all-American/Uruguayan get-together of wholesome family fun and friendly neighborly cheer at the beginning of July.  But all that time could have been spent on much better things, if only we had priorities.

For from 6:00 to 8:00, the Cartoon Network was showing the epic motion picture "Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief."  And really, we had no excuse.  Ian had told us about Percy, and in fact he reminded us at 5- to 10-minute intervals from about 5:30 to 7:50 that night.  Indulgent people were chatting, talking, swimming, eating, playing badminton, but one responsible party kept his eye on the time and his mind on priorities.

This turned out to be a one-shot deal, because this was only the second of two viewings available on cable for this important work, and we had already missed the first one.  These neighbors have their little party every year, but this movie was only showing on the Cartoon Network twice for All Time, and we somehow managed to miss both opportunities.

But tonight, we might be able to redeem ourselves.  Ian announced that "Teen Beach Movie" was playing "on the Disney Channel - not Cartoon Network."  I say "playing," becaus Ian always talks about what program is "playing" on TV (and now Daniel does, as well), much the way Mahattaners might talk about what is playing this evening on Broadway.  Teen Beach Movie captures everything I despise about the Disney Channel.  They tend to recycle all of their insipid pseudo-teen actors from all their other shows, in ever-more-insipid plots, for their made-for-TV-quality made-for-TV movies.  But Ian was pleased that this other important movie was playing  - a kind of partial redemption, however nominal, for our criminal neglect of Percy Jackson and his Lightning Thief during our frivolous neighborly cookout the other evening.

(July 11, 2013)