August 10, 2005

Upwardly mobile


Yay for mobiles!
Originally uploaded by billyjoebob.
'Tis true, punkin, that your grandparents are In The Air. I know, of course, that your concept of 'in the air' is mostly limited to the antics of the fabulous mobile that your Auntie Loz provided, but I am here to assure you that their trajectory is at a slightly higher altitude.

This time tomorrow, we will all be sitting down to our 94th* cup of tea, and your grandpa and I will more than likely be getting ready to watch the cricket.

Your mother has expressed on more than one occasion her surprise at the realisation that you will grow up Australian. That your accent will be an Australian accent, and that you will (if your Grandad Ian has anything to do with it) barrack for Australia without qualification in any and all sporting events.

Of course, being an Australian myself, I'm more comfortable with this concept, but it's here that we get to expose a fatal flaw in my experience.

Your father, punkin, for all of his continental suavenessality and panache, has never once been to Europe. Sure, he's spent several very formative years in the Yoonited States, but never once has he strolled the streets of the Left Bank, leaned out of the Tower of Pisa, walked the wall in Berlin or towered over London.

Your mum is the far better traveled of the two of us, and its to her that you will have to look for tales of Paris in the spring, New Orleans in the summer and Chennai in the dear god it's hot. Of course, she's never been to the Corn Palace in Mitchell, South Dakota, so I've got that going for me.

So I'm going to promise you something. I may come to regret this later when I figure out how much it's going to cost, but I promise wholeheartedly that we will see Europe for the first time together. That I'll hold your hand on the London Eye, and that I'll teach you how to order your dad a beer in five languages.

Love you

*this may be an exaggeration - more likely to be around 43.

2 comments:

Ken said...

Lumpy, Bombaloo and I will meet you at Big Ben on tuesday at 3 o'clock.
Great post.

L-A-LoST said...

hello my wonderful brambo,
you are very lucky to have my ma and pa - your grandma and grandad - visiting you for the next few weeks...
i know they are very excited and looking forward to meeting you for the first time and giving you lots of cuddles.
i wish i could be there to meet you too, but hopefully if your dad keeps his promise, you will all come to london to see me and uncle liam and we can go on the london eye... hopefully in the near future though.
love you always
your aunty amy
x x x