Expect the Unexpected

My father has always told me that I am one of his most favorite human beings. He cites my consistency as one of my best attributes. I'm one of those "what you see is what you get" kind of gals. A good thing, yes...but perhaps a little boring. But even I have a bag of tricks and surprises that I sometimes pull from. A hanky up my sleeve of sorts that keeps people guessing. I recall one of the first times I tugged on that hanky and the reaction it got from people. I was 17 and it was the fall of my senior year of high school. I was playing Powder Puff football and I picked number 69 for my jersey. I had no idea what it meant at the time but I knew it was something scandalous. I walked in the homecoming parade alongside our float and then into the stands of our football "stadium" preparing to take the field for the big game. I remember the look on the face of one of my mom's friends when she saw my shirt and the way she lifted her eyebrows when asking my mom, "Number 69?". Again, I had no idea what it meant but I could see that it was getting a reaction. That must have been the beginning of my week of rebellion as a teen because it was about the same time that I took interest in a football player (incidentally our powder puff coach) who was a bit of a redneck and drove a red pick up truck. He asked me to go to a party after the game and I agreed. It was when I realized he expected me to sit right next to him in his pickup..you know..in the middle of the bench seat..that I drew the line and retreated to my prior life of goody goody preppy girl.

I think about this every once in a while when I feel the need to step out of my comfort zone as that good girl and do something just a little bit unexpected. And sometimes I find myself in the middle of a seemingly harmless and routine activity for myself that is attracting attention from someone else as unusual. For example, those of you who know and love me understand that I like wine. But sometimes I like to kick it up a notch and mix up a martini. The other night I was on the phone with my mother, making dinner for my family and a cocktail for myself. I asked her to hang on a second and proceeded to shake my martini until it was chilled and frothy and when I said, "Ok..go ahead" she wanted to know what the noise was. I nonchalantly mentioned that I was making a martini and had to shake it up real quick. There was a pause and then a little laugh and I heard her say to my dad "Your daughter is making herself a martini!". Now I must say that she was not saying it in an incredulous or judgemental way. She was, I think, pleasantly surprised to find that on a routine night, one where I was not entertaining anyone but myself, I was making myself a drink. I realized that to her it was quite unexpected and I felt that familiar thrill of taking someone by surprise.


Last night I went with my girlfriends to see Mamma Mia. I have loved this show and the music since I saw it with Peter in Toronto 4 years ago. I could not have been more thrilled then when I found out they were making it into a movie. Last night was the second time I have seen it in the theater and I wouldn't hesitate to pay $8.50 to see it again. There is a character in the cast named Tanya who is the close friend of Donna. She has been married 3 times, has had extensive plastic surgery and the young men (particularly one, named Pepper) think she's hot stuff. There is a scene in the show where she sings a song to Pepper called "Does your Mother know?" (Listen here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vi05Su7jX6k). I have told Peter, repeatedly, that if the Old Town Playhouse ever took a stab at Mamma Mia, I would totally take voice lessons and audition for the role of Tanya. I think this surprises him. It could not be more out of character for me. Me, the girl who didn't need the "which sex in the city character are you" quiz to tell me that I was totally Charlotte. One might think I would want the role of Sophie, the daughter in Mamma Mia given her girly, girl, bride to be character. But no, if given the chance I would pick Tanya because playing Tanya would be the unexpected thing to do and sometimes doing the unexpected is doing what's fun, and fulfilling expectations you have of yourself to step outside the box and live a little more freely than you may allow yourself to do on a daily basis.