I checked out some books on tape from the library to try out the concept of listening to family-friendly stories in the car while on road trips. Garrison Keillor told a story of an elderly couple in Lake Wobegon whose arguments over spending money to travel followed a specific form. The argument would leave them satisfied at the end, like playing a Chopin etude.
“Why is that funny?” my son asked.
“It’s a grown-up thing.”
“It doesn’t even make any sense.” His voice was rising in pitch the way it does when he’s getting annoyed.
“This is what my parents used to play on road trips when I was a kid.”
“Well I hope you’ll put in a DVD for us while you’re playing that!”
The kid makes me laugh more than Garrison Keillor. But now I need to figure out something else to check out.
