Stranded

Matt and I always say we're glad we moved to Clarksville a year before having Kate. (The phrase "glad we moved to Clarksville" is practically unheard of in our house, and applies only in the context I'm about to explain.) What we mean is, after our years in Nashville, where we went out frequently in the evenings with Div School friends, enjoying pub trivia and "Two-fer Tuesdays" at the Red Door, 18 months of nights by ourselves at home playing board games and watching Netflix movies helped ease us into the more sedate lifestyle of parenthood.

Occasionally, when we're out on a rare mommy & daddy date night, I'll glance at the young professionals gathering at the bar and think, "ah, wouldn't it be fun to hang out at the after-work watering hole with other yuppies?"

I'm up in Louisville right now for work. I recently took a new job doing acquisitions for Westminster John Knox Press. So, I'll be up here for a few days each month. This being my hometown, my parents are glad, and sometimes I'll even bring a child or two or three! Claire is with me this time, hanging with my mom right now, and I couldn't wait to get back to her after a day in the office.

Then the car wouldn't start. And my cell phone battery is dead (as usual). And my boss' battery couldn't jump it. And my parents' AAA won't cover me even though it's their car that is dead.

So, here I am, holed up in a pub across the street from the office while I wait for my dad to come rescue me. I'm drinking chardonnay and intending to do some editing work on a freelance project. The dark bar makes the computer's glow on my face all that more annoying, I imagine, to the young, water-holing professionals trying to blow off the day's stress around me. I tried the pub next door, but found it already full. This place was practically empty when I came in, but not so anymore. It's everyone's second choice, I guess. I feel like an oddball, but with enough confidence to deal with it. I caught a guy staring. . . and then spotting my wedding rings.

Here I am, in the bar after work, and I just want to be home with my baby.