Tuesdays with Morrie? Or Saturdays with Mom?

The TMI Tuesday questions weren't very interesting (to me) this week, so one less meme ... which I'm sure some of you are grateful for!

~*~

Let me first make a confession - I never read, nor saw, Tuesdays with Morrie. I did scan the SparkNotes to make sure it was the plot I thought it was, because if it wasn't? This post title wouldn't make a lick of sense. So ... there is that!

Anywell *bonus points to any sports talk radio fans who get this reference* ...

Since moving to Las Vegas, I have been rekindling my relationship with my mom. We spent decades apart, talking maybe once every 6 months? There were many reasons for this - too many to list here - not all of them faults of mom. 

Initially, when Mike and I moved here, there were some boundary issues. Mom would stop by the apartment, unannounced, once or twice a week *WARNING* This is one of the quickest ways to piss me off in a nanosecond so we quickly came to an agreement that I would spend Saturday afternoons with her - a mom date of sorts. Every Saturday, at 2:30 PM, I pick her up and we go to our now favorite neighborhood bar, have drinks, eat lunch, and discuss the meaning of life. It's also the one day of the week that I put makeup on because mom tells me she is embarrassed to be seen with me if I'm not wearing makeup. That should give you some insight into the tone of my relationship with mom.

About half of the time, these dates end in some sort of drama, usually instigated by mom having one too many dry manhattans. 

There was the time when we were leaving the bar and when she opened the car door, slammed it into the car next to us ... which just happened to have someone in it. Fortunately, there was no damage, but it got pretty dicey there for a bit as she insisted that she didn't hit their car (she did).

Then there was the time she decided it was a good idea to be extremely critical of my parenting. As I tried to keep my cool, she continued to poke the bear. That date ended in me telling her to "FUCK OFF" and walking home.

*SIDE NOTE* This was before I insisted on being the designated driver for our dates. I am now - always - the designated driver and I do drink responsibly.

We had one of these drama Saturdays this weekend ... again dry manhattan fueled. When dry manhattan fueled, mom has a tendency to forget what she says, then when I question her on it, she insists she didn't say whatever the offensive remark was and gets beyond defensive. Me being me, rather than just letting it go, I turn into a right fighter. I'm sure Dr. Phil would ask, "How's that working for you?" Mom then abruptly stood up and left the bar. I had to chase her down, pour her into my car, then go back in and pay our tab.

I'm still undecided as to whether or not Saturdays with Mom are beneficial to our relationship, or a snapshot of everything that has ever been wrong in our relationship.

For now? I just need to work on being "nice" for the three hours we spend together each week. I'm certain that mastering that skill will be valuable in other aspects of my life, right??