National Kevin Day

Yesterday was a special celebration in our household. National Kevin Day comes every year after the EOGs (End of Grade tests) are completed, when our boy is so tired from the hours-long testing that we give him a little celebration of his own devising.

So I took Kevin to Crazy Fire for dinner where we piled our bowls with raw meat and lots of veggies, dumping lime ginger sauce and garlic oil over all and then watched as the whole concoction sizzled away on the grill. Back at our table I realized Kevin is an interesting person.

We were rolling laughing at each other. He did his Jim Gaffigan "Hot Pockets" imitation (if you don't know who that is, look it up in the videos... you'll love him). Then he told me how he and his friend, Ian, had devised a scheme to get each other out of answering tough questions in class. When their algebra teacher called on Ian yesterday, Kevin stood up next to him and said, "I'm sorry, my client is not taking questions right now. And no pictures, please." Kevin says the teacher laughed at it and until I get the call from the Vice Principal, I'm going to assume all is well.

And would I have had that kind of nerve in 8th grade? Um, let's say "NO." Also, for some reason I found it hilarious that one of his teachers is named Mr. Wright and they call him, what else? Mr. Wrong. Apparently, he doesn't find it funny and I don't blame him but I did laugh about it.

I'm wondering now as I type this if perhaps the guy at the grill didn't cook my scallops all the way through. Would that have made me loopy? Or maybe just really, really childish? Encouraging delinquency in a minor, especially my own minor, is no small potatoes.

After dinner National Kevin Day continued with the viewing of our latest Netflix movie "The Pursuit of Happyness," a movie Kev had been waiting "forever" to see. Turned out to be a depressing watch, a movie I actually found myself holding my breath through most of, but a really good object lesson for my boy who is inordinately smart but kinda lazy about it. He made up his mind last night that he would be going to college "for sure" in order to ensure that he and his future child need never live in a homeless shelter. I declared that it was a good plan to have.

I hope whatever comes in the next few years, Kevin's teenage years, that he and I can remain friendly like we were last night.

After all, National Kevin Day only comes once a year.