It’s that time of year again – back to school! And though many of us have been out of school for years (or minutes) it is amazing how the pace of the entire city changes because of edu-ma-cation-ing. We get it – school’s important. Fine. Just stay out of my way on the way to the chalet! So here they are, your top 5 conflicts about that time of year that is…back to school!
#5 The back to school shopping – OK, admittedly if you don’t have kids you might not care about this one much, but you should. What about all the deals on pencils and paper? I jest. Still, if you are the type to get all of your bespoke specialty goods from certain London proprietors of leather bound wonderment; you are going to need to plan early. And you probably didn’t. At least I didn’t. And now I need to explain that to El Nino!
#4 Turning your brain back on – Let’s start with the basics kids: No, your parents don’t know algebra! Or if they did, they forgot it exactly ten minutes after the test. Or they lost it in the club or on a beach in Ibiza in a bottle of fruit punch. So when we look at your homework, we are trying to piece back a story that sounds familiar but is long forgotten. So be patient. We want to help. We want to feel smart and stuff. Your ridicule doesn’t help kiddo!
#3 The Thursday afternoon on the 30 and 40 – Nothing screams “the kids are back in school so we can only do fun stuff on the weekends now” quite as loudly as the roar of the engine as it heads out of town. For us locals, that means high speeds and shoulder driving down the 30 and 40 in a beeline to the chalet. The cars all packed up, it’s getting later by the minute, and…”what do you mean you need to use the bathroom before we go?” Still, once you are out there and relaxing by the beach or on the farm, there is nothing like that. You soak up all full two days of family, friends, and sun, only to see the clock tick back towards homework and Sunday.
#2 The Free Time – We love, love, love, the idea of free time, and whether you are in your first September out of Uni or parents of a herd of kids, this is the ideal life. There is scarcely a line at the coffee shop, and you can relax at the beach in style. You may even make a mid-week unheard of run to the chalet. But truth is, we get bored. After about 3 weeks of this we start talking to our own hands for a little company.
#1 The Traffic – Like calendric clockwork, there are huge sections of town that must be avoided at all costs, twice a day. School pick-up traffic makes construction traffic look like a casual stroll in the proverbial park. There is no true conflict – I hate it. Please start sending a private plane to pick up my little ones. Isn’t that included in tuition? That is all I have to say about this.
This love/hate message was brought to you while the kids were still at their Bibi and Baba Auod’s house and before Baba left the chalet.
