Life in High Def

by Matt

I got a giant (to me, at least) High-Def TV for Christmas. My wife signed us up for the HD cable, which was installed yesterday. As the tech was showing me the options on the remote, he flipped over to ESPN. I barely paid attention to what he was saying. Somehow, the picture seemed more real than my own two eyes. Everything I was looking at seemed to be a part of my world, and no longer trapped in my happy picture box. No Vaseline on the lens; no trick lighting: wrinkles were evident; gray hair was standing out; make-up was caked. This is how real life actually looked.

After my brief training session, he told me to enjoy, and left. The door wasn't even closed before the TV ended up on Nick, Jr. I ran into the kitchen to put my pork chops in the brine that I prepared while the kids were eating lunch. I switched out the laundry, grabbed the mail, and then settled my youngest down for her nap.

Ever since I decided to be a stay at home dad, my life has been an exercise in prioritizing. I've had to give up certain things that I may have liked, but not necessarily needed. I could read an article online, or I could practice. (I'm a musician.) I could watch the end of a movie I've seen 5 times, or I could get my oldest daughter's preschool snack ready the night before. I could meander around a store for awhile, or spend some quality time with my wife. (That doesn't necessarily mean what you think it means. Well...maybe sometimes...)

Mr. Rules said it best when he talked about expectations. So many things you expect to happen, don't. And things you would never imagine happening, do. I'm learning all the time that you need to see things for the way they are in real life. I want to imagine I'll have an easy time finding a job when I decide to go back to work. The reality, however, is that it may not be so easy after 5-7 years. (I have two girls. One is almost 4 and the other is almost 2. We're expecting our third child in May.) I get paranoid that I've stunted some part of my kids growth. The reality, however, is that they both amaze me in how much they can already do/know/say/count/read etc. Who did this? Did somebody come in and teach them while I was sleeping?

Every day I'm trying to see the things in my life for what they are. I don't want to see the things that aren't' important to me; the things that I'm expecting, for better or for worse. I try to see the High Def reality that is my life. How awesome is it that I have two girls dressed as princesses, singing at the top of the their lungs, "Theme from Spider-Man"?

To be fair, surround sound can be a little much sometimes.