A few weeks ago our youngest, Small Son, saw an ad on another DVD for the release of an animated movie called Planet 51. He was desperate to see it and asked me if I could put it on the LoveFilm.com list please. I explained that his Dad was the person who held the account and it had a password so he'd have to wait till Daddy got back from a business trip and ask him to put the movie on the list. Small Son was disappointed at having to wait ("awwwwwwwwww!) but his Dad was going to be home soon and that really wasn't such a long wait. Besides I happen to think that waiting for things is an important life skill. The kid needs to learn a little about delayed gratification.
So that's when the countdown started.
"How long till Dad is home? How many days? How many hours?"
You get the picture.
The day Hubby walked back through the door he barely had time to drop his bag on the hall floor when Small Son ran up to him.
"Dad, can you go on LoveFilm.com and order Planet 51 now?"
"Can I take my coat off first?"
"OK. I'll get the website up on the computer."
As Hubby was hanging up his coat I explained the Small Son had been driving me crazy. "I'll make you a nice cuppa, if you could just update the list quickly so he'll stop badgering me." Hubby found it all very amusing.
When I brought him his tea he was looking over the (now updated with Plant 51) list. "There are a few films on here that we put on ages ago."
"Put them on High Priority and we'll get them faster," I suggested.
Small Son's ears pricked up, "Can you put my movie on that too so I get it faster too please?"
"OK," said Hubby as he ticked the box.
"So how long before I get my movie?"
"Well first we have to send back the ones we have at the moment and then they check the list and they send you the next two that they have available, which might include your movie or it might not. See if it's very popular all their copies might be already out, so you might have to wait a bit. OK?"
Small Son (he's 6) looked dubious. It was quite obvious that all this waiting was becoming very tedious. However, he's a proactive little thing so he put the DVDs that we currently had back in their envelope and pestered me hourly until I posted it.
Unfortunately a few days later the movies that showed up were the ones that Hubby had moved up to High Priority - Terminator Salvation and Australia. Small Son looked like we told him that Christmas and his birthday were cancelled.
"Sweetie - we warned you that this might happen. Never mind. Planet 51 is the only one on High Priority now. As soon as we send these back they'll send it I'm sure."
"When will you be finished with your movies?"
I really wasn't in the mood for cyborg murder and mayhem and despite my fantastic description of Australia (It's like a cowboy film set in World War 2 with Wolverine in it!), I couldn't get Hubby enthusiastic about spending an evening in front of it.
"Well we're away this weekend so I guess we'll watch them when we get back."
"Okay." It was a bitter pill to swallow. I could see him working out how many days he'd have to wait and it was very frustrating for him.
So we went away for the weekend and got back this Monday. On Monday evening just before going to bed Small Son kissed us both goodnight then gave us the LoveFilm.com envelope with the two unwatched movies in it.
"Here you go," he said all chipper, "That'll give you something to do. You can watch one of these tonight!"
You have got to give him full marks for his tenacity and despite the fact that he was constantly knocked back he never got whiney - he just got more relentlessly pro-active.
We watched Terminator Salvation on Monday night. It was all sealed in an envelope ready to be posted when Small Son got up for school on Tuesday morning. He watched to make sure Daddy took it with him to post. He looked quite satisfied.
Of course he's nagged us continuously since to watch Australia just in case LoveFilm.com won't release the next movie without getting both rentals back. Well we haven't. It's been a lot harder to get my husband interested in a cowboy/WW2 movie starring Wolverine than you might think.
Today is General Election Day in the UK. I'll be going to cast my vote a little later and frankly the current state of politics induces gloomy thoughts. I can't stand the current Prime Minister - who by the way was never elected Prime Minister - he just kind of assumed the job when Tony Blair
This morning Hubby and I were sitting up in bed, laptops on laps, checking our mail and drinking tea.
ME: How depressing. The Guardian is calling it a conservative victory before the first vote has even been cast.
HUBBY: On the upside, I just got an email to say Planet 51 has been despatched.
So not all bad news today then. Perhaps I should take a leaf out of Small Son's book and not give in just because things look bleak.
Lessons learned: Good things come to those that wait, perseverance pays off and there's always an upside.
12 comments:
We had to wait 8 years here and watch everything fall apart in the meantime. I get you.
Love small son and his persistence. That will annoy the crap out of you as he's growing and stand him in good stead when he's older.
Ha ha ha ha!
My boys loved Planet 51. It was OK. A little predictable for grownups, but a satisfying story with some funny twists.
I have 3 just like small son. They have been yelling at us cause we've been holding on to Red Cliff 1 and 2 for a week and they are dying to see Fantastic Mr. Fox which is sitting in the next spot. They are hounding us. Persistent little buggers.
We gave up on Love Film because it didn't look like we'd get to see what we wanted to. So I admire your son for not whingeing!
I'm off to vote when I get Neil from the station. We're in a strong Conservative area so I doubt that it matters much which way I vote, the outcome will be the same.
Fantastic, I'm so pleased someone had a good day. I'm with you, both Gordon Brown and David Cameroon fill me with dread and gloom. What an awful day.
Sarah - I have this nagging feeling that things need to fall apart before the necessary changes get made. I'm not sure the US would've elected Obama had you guys not had 8 years of Dubya first.
As for Small Son - Oh Yea!
Peter - He loved it! I enjoyed it too.
Ello - Persistent little buggers is right! I have a feeling that Fantastic Mr Fox might be on the list too!
Fairyhedgehog - I'm in a strong conservative area too and of course he was returned (with an increased majority) but I still voted with my conscience. I just hope that Nick Clegg doesn't get into bed with David Cameron. That's just too icky to even think about.
Spud - I still have hope that Clegg will go to Mandy and say I'm prepared to deal as long as Gordon goes.... Mind you I'm not sure about who'll replace him. It's all a big mess!
Watching the movie with my little boy made me happy though.
That's my biggest worry: Clegg and Cameron in cahoots. I voted LibDem but I'd have voted Labour if I thought it would keep the Tories out.
Roll on PR. If it ever happens.
FairyHedgehog - I couldn't agree more. A LibCon coalition would be a disaster for the LibDems and the country. There simply isn't enough common ground and the conservatives would impose their will on any policy making. However I think that Nick Clegg is playing it just right here. In order not to ignore the electorate he has to talk to the Cons first. they've got the most MPs despite not having a majority so he has to at least look like he's tried with them. The Libs and Labour have far more common ground and the Libs stand to gain far more by a coalition with them. I'm sure that they could sweet talk at least 10 independents in so that the get the requisite 326 for a majority government. At least that's what I'm hoping. I'd like to see them making Gordon's resignation part of the deal. I'm thinking David Milliband is the obvious successor. And I too want a PR referendum within a year.
It's what a lot of us want but I suspect it's not what we'll get.
Your story is wondeful, Janey. I swear you should be a newspaper columnist. Everyone would read your stuff!
Anyway, we have another set of politicians in place over here that are veneered over to look like they take the high road, but living in DC and seeing many of them up close and personal, I can tell you, it's the same old shit with new faces.
The thing is, all politicians SUCK. That's the thing, if everyone truy understood, right down to their collective marrows, that the people who seek out these 'jobs', are self-righteous, pompous, fake-do-gooders who want to ride on taxpayer gravy trains 'for the greater good', then we'd be all better off.
In the U.S., the place runs better when the Pres is one party and the Congress is another (majority-speaking) so no one can fuck us up too damn much.
LOL your blog is brilliant! Just finding it today and seeing that your little one was so patient for Planet 51, I hope it wasn't wasted I hope he enjoys the flick! I love how you call him small son, that's really cute!
Your son is so inspiring! This is beautiful.
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