The connections to my own life have not been lost on me. Since 1999, when I first read High Fidelity, I became aware of Nick Hornby's penchant for writing about the thirtysomething, selfish, superficial male who puts way too much emphasis on his record collection and not enough on his emotional connections. About A Boy cranks up the lessons learned in High Fidelity and sort of works as a companion piece, mentally bitch-slapping me into maturity, or at the very least, informed introspection.
I'm the guy with 1,500 CDs and enough DVDs to justify a blog chronicling a weird, alphabetical viewing project. I'm the guy with that kind of time and that kind of disposable income. I'm not a parent. I'm not even a safe bet yet.
I'm still not good with kids. My friends' houses are filling up with broken toys and sippy cups and Diaper Champs, and I've lost touch with so many friends because we have so little to say to each other anymore. We stay in touch with one couple because they make a great effort to stay in touch with us too. We have fun. We make it work. That's what you're supposed to do.
I'm still freaked out by the idea of having kids. Actually, I am not bothered by the loss of freedom (I'm broke and work all the time -- freedom is not a factor). I'm bothered by the idea that I'll end up being a terrible father.
Also, if and when I become a father, I wonder about the last vestiges of a connection I have to most of my friends. They already don't have any time for us. What happens when I don't have time for them either? Will I have back-up, like Marcus says? Or will we all be little islands?
I think I say this a lot, and don't actually act on it, but I'll say it again in hopes of breaking precedent.
ReplyDeleteBeers should happen soon, or Holly's lasagna. I miss that stuff, and you need to meet my better half.
-Christopher
I watched this movie and enjoyed it immensely. I thought the dysfunctional family of the boy was convincing. Oftentimes on TV or the movies you'll have these 'wacky' characters as part of a family, but they're mainly just punchlines or part of the setup.
ReplyDeleteTrue families often are searingly scarred, people are messed up, and if you're part of a messed-up family, some of their messed-upness is going to leak onto you and impact you in ways you may or may not be able to figure out 20 years later. (Also this is why Little Miss Sunshine is one of my favorite movies of all time.)
And this is the only movie I've ever enjoyed Hugh Grant in ... but this actually may be the only movie I've seen that has Hugh Grant in it!