Day 853 -BFFs

During the weekdays, it's just me and the kids. My social interaction with other people is restricted to instant messaging, an occasional phone call, and my new imaginary friend, Stainy, the talking sofa.

Having your two year old children as your main source of human interaction can be akin to having a foreign exchange student. Conversations are rather mundane, and sentences are constructed of one syllable words. When in public, you can't take your eyes off of them because they would get lost. And they both tend to smell.

A realization hit me over the course of the past week that I have gained new found friendship and trust in a group of people that I have not befriended before. You have seen and most definitely heard them in a wide variety of locations like grocery stores, shopping malls, and delis. I am talking about old Jewish women.

That's right. Old Jewish women have become my new best friend. I don't know what they find appealing about a thirty-something Japanese man pushing twin toddlers around in public, but they gravitate towards me like matzah in soup stock. Like lox on a bagel. Like Jackie on a Mason. Oh...you get the idea.

Weather permitting, I take the kids out on a thirty minute stroll every day. I usually go to the grocery store, the mall, a coffee shop, or a synagogue (hmm...possible connection?). And practically every time I end up talking to an old Jewish woman. We end up talking about the kids, what I do for a living, what my wife does, and the best way to make latkes.

Although these talks are brief, there is something comforting and enjoyable about talking to other adults. These old Jewish women also spark something in me that makes me immediately comfortable with them. I wasn't too sure what it was, but I began to think about all of the stereotypes associated with old Jewish women: naggy, controlling, shrewd, and overprotective.
Then it hit me. All of the Jewish women reminded me of Crazy Grandma Ichikawa.

Now that I had that epiphany, I hope my relationship with my new friends won't deteriorate. I've already rolled my eyes several times and even said, "I heard you the first time, woman!"