Cheers

My father-in-law is the smartest man

Shelley

When do we become too old to play?  Is there a deadline to meet, a day where we toss the hat in and say, “Nope, no more play for me?”

I don’t think we ever stop enjoying moments of playfulness.  It’s possible to keep that whimsical part of us alive when we surround ourselves with people who play, or at least put up with us when we’re playful.

I’m damn lucky to have married into a family where a playful nature is welcomed, and where they’ve let my quirkiness be allowed.  Both my in-laws are whimsical by nature.  I love their sense of humor and their zest for life.  My father-in-law is the master of playful pranks (good clean ones mostly, I’ve heard stories though…) and he’s not only packaged up some doozy of gifts for me to enjoy, but he’s also gracious when I’ve found a few for him over the years.

He can dish it out, and he can take it like a real trooper.  This year he told us he’d be gone for his birthday, traveling, enjoying his 81st year, and not to have one of those reminders of my age parties for him.  So we obliged, long enough so he thought we forgot about the big day, and then, we appeared with gifts worthy of a man who didn’t want to celebrate.

Score…a day like that makes for an opportunity of the whimsical side of me to appear.  I knew he still deserved a special gift.  At 81, though, it’s hard to find a unique gift or one that he hasn’t already purchased for himself or more importantly one that he needs.

What does a guy with the smarts like him need that he hasn’t received before?  I had to think hard.  Too bad, he’s still getting this shirt, it is a must.  We give it back and forth to each other at random gift giving times.  I wrote about the history of the shirt here.

This year, it was time for him to get it back for his birthday, I wrote a note on it that I had rescued it from E-bay.  I wrapped it in paper bags to disguise it.  It’s hard to do so, with its standard framed size, so we always know when we’re getting it from each other.  I needed something else to surprise him…he’s got enough hats.

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This year, I wanted to recognize his uber-intelligence about mold on food.  Yep, he’s convinced that nothing really goes bad, especially when it comes to expiration dates.  You can cut mold off cheese, or you can eat it past the expiration date.  He even gave me a marking pen so I can cross off the dates, and eat the item without fear of going beyond the ‘e’ date.  I have it hanging prominently on our refrigerator as a reminder that he must know something, he’s lived to be 81 for goodness sake!

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Hmm…that got me thinking.  Several weeks before they left for their ditch the birthday we’re off to New York trip, my husband had purchased a loaf of sourdough bread to eat with the soup he made for dinner.  We didn’t eat all of it and put the remaining loaf slices in our cupboard to use later.

A couple of weeks later, we still hadn’t used it.  But it still looked fine, no mold, so we left it in the cupboard.

A couple of weeks later, it still looked fine, no mold, so he put a note on it, “Experiment, don’t eat.”  Let’s see how long it takes to form mold.

Okay…sounds fun.

That’s so weird there’s no mold on it yet.  Dang…I started thinking Mr.’s Dad is right, expiration dates are arbitrary and not real?  Is he the smartest man alive or what!?

A couple of weeks later, still no mold.  That’s enough, I did some research and found this tidbit on Google.

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So, yep, boy, oh, boy, this loaf of bread is a perfect gift.  He loves sourdough bread, he’s not afraid of eating food past its expiration date, he doesn’t have a loaf like this yet, he’s always one to enjoy a prank, and if it comes with a proclamation from me that he’s the smartest man alive, BOOM – best gift ever.

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I included a card that proclaimed my admission he’s the smartest man alive and included the clip above about why sourdough bread doesn’t mold on a piece of paper and taped to the loaf of bread along with the “experiment, don’t eat” note Mr. had put on it weeks before.  I’m hoping my mother-in-law tossed the gift before he could eat it!

I have a hunch, I’m in for a doozy of a birthday gift this year…!

Post inspiration – Nancy Merrill’s Photography Challenge – Whimsical and a few days late, but it was a belated birthday, so that counts right…? Dutch Goes The Photo – Birthday.

PS – Do you enjoy moments of play?  Do you have an uber-intelligent in-law too?  Share your whimsical gift story.  

 

 

 

Published by Shelley

Letting my quirk out one post at a time.

35 thoughts on “My father-in-law is the smartest man”

  2. You have a very cool and wise father-in-law. I haven’t met mine. He died when my husband and I were in college.

    My father died when he was 81. He should have been 87 this Oct 27.

    1. Aw, yes, he is. Sorry, you didn’t get to meet your father-in-law, I’m sure he would’ve loved meeting you. Hugs to you, Winnie, it’s hard when we miss someone as important to our lives as our dads are. xx

      1. Awww. Thank you, Shelley! But I know he’ll be delighted with my kids. So very true! At least my mom is with me. 😉

        1. So very, true, Winnie! You’ve done an excellent job of raising your family and he’s smiling watching you as you care for your mom! 🙂

  3. My mother-in-law is a devout Christian with a sometimes very dirty sense of humor that surprises everyone–at first. She just had a health scare, so we’re all hoping that she and the jokes remain good and healthy for years to come!

    1. LOL – I bet she has the best surprises! Aw, I’m sending healing wishes her way, I hope her jokes and health remain. Thank you for sharing thoughts about her, I wish you all well.

  5. Perhaps a secret to a long life is a very healthy sense of humor. I enjoyed this story of your father-in-law. Glad he has never regretted ignoring expiration dates! He must have an ironclad immune system. 🙂

    1. I’m glad you enjoyed the post. I’m sure there are times when he’s regretted not following the dates, but I’m guessing that’s a family secret he’ll hold on to for sure! 🙂

  6. God rest their souls, my in-laws were fantastic. I always said that I had less trouble with my in-laws than Mary did with hers. My father-in-law dropped out of school when he was 15 (you could do that back in the ’30’s) but he was really sharp. He learned to use a slide rule for his job and could do some pretty complicated calculations with it. He was a master of “working the angles”: they weren’t the sort to dabble in the stock market, but he knew what banks were offering the highest rates of interest and would move his money around so he could earn the most. He would spend his Sunday mornings at the Maxwell Street Market haggling with the vendors (most of whom were selling stuff that “fell off the back of a truck”) to get the best price on whatever he was buying. (Anytime I see a picture of the old Maxwell Street, I look for him.) They were young adults during the Depression, so it was a matter of survival then. By the time Mary was ready to go to college, he had all the money saved up. Amazing people.

    1. John, thank you for sharing – you were lucky like me. Your father-in-law and mine would get along splendidly. It is so nice you and Mary carry on the fond memories of them, a legacy is a tribute we all hope for, and you sharing your thoughts has touched my heart today, thank you!

  7. I think we all have the “inner child” that is alive and well. That is why I do clowning. It gives me an excuse and to the unknowing public it is acceptable because I am a clown. A win win. It is awesome you still have older generations you can still play with. A true gift. Enjoy.

    1. Yes, you’ve figured out a great way to continue to play! Thank you for sharing your smiles all around, everywhere you go!

    1. Thank you, VJ! I’ve yet to stretch my expiry dates as far as some, but I’m finding that there are many survivors of doing so just like your husband and my father-in-law. So they must be on to something, all I know is they are definitely smarty pants for sure! 😉

  12. What a fun post to read, Shelley! Enjoying the gifts of humor and play keeps us young at heart and mentally resilient until the end. Play is part of the curriculum in the university classes I teach. In one general education class I have taught, in order to help students understand the value of spontaneous play, at the end that class, we walk out to the bridge that spans the river and blow bubbles! The smiles and awed expressions are priceless! I like to think I’ve reminded the Millennial generation how to play again. By the way, my hubby is a lot like your whimsical family!

    1. Aw, thank you, Terri, much appreciated! I would’ve LOVED a class like that in school – so wonderful that you’re able to share play with your students, your initiatives are commendable. It is fun to have a whimsical family!

    1. Thank you…I shall never know if he ate it or not!? But there is the possibility that he’s saving it for my birthday just to see if the mold stays away another month!

  16. What a wonderful tribute. I love having people in my life who are good at balancing seriousness with whimsy. Thanks for the chuckle and for joining the challenge!

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