Day 14: B-I-L

Date: February 14, 2010
Friend: Bryan Scherbring
Activity: Taco Bell
Location: Scherbring's home
Total $ Spent: $2.07 (whatever, it's Valentine's Day, who cares.)

My original $1 date for Valentine's Day was supposed to be my friend Angela, but due to unforeseen circumstances we had to reschedule. I was worried about finding someone to fill in at the last minute on such a high-expectation holiday, especially since almost everyone I know is in a relationship. I moped around the house for a little while and sent a few frantic text messages. Just when I started to feel like a total loser-face ("it's snowing, I have no plans, it's Valentine's Day and no one loves me...") it occurred to me that I was making it too complicated. Enter Bryan, my hero of a brother-in-law.



Bryan and Becky started dating in 1997 and got married in 1999. At first, I didn't approve of him because I thought he was too young and non-committal, even though technically I hand picked him from a crowd and said, "what about that guy?" It took me a few months to drop my pre-conceived notions of him and eventually I came around and accepted that Bryan was "the one" for Becky. We became the 3 Muskateers, spending every holiday together, going to shows, travelling, and laughing hysterically. Bryan became so much more than just my sister's boyfriend - he became my brother. He has always been very protective of me, something which I don't take for granted.

My brother-in-law is a musician, hair stylist, carpenter, comic, stay-at-home dad, and all-around fix it man. He has been in a few bands throughout his life, and is currently playing bass in a cover band called Midtown Method. He's a songwriter, and I was lucky enough to be the inspiration for one of his original songs. It goes a little something like this:

There's this girl I know, she's all tied up inside.
And she tries so hard to make it look like she's just fine.
But I know where she's going and I know where she's coming from.
She's a little beaten up, but she's tough.
She'll never give up.

There's nothing like the weight of love in the palm of your hand.
So you better hold on tight for your life is about to change.
I tell you love is on its way to show you everything is okay.

Love is so hard to understand, there is no plan.
So just because your heart's been torn apart,
It doesn't mean you won't love again.

Of course that's not the whole song, but you get the gist. He's pretty much a hopeless romantic and can't stand that I've been so unlucky in love. Whenever he performs it, I proudly admit that I'm the tied up inside girl who hasn't found love! It's a happy family moment for all.


Last Valentine's Day, Bryan, Charlie and I visited Becky (my sister) during her shift at Charleston's, and since she was working this Valentine's Day it made sense that we would spend dinner together again. But how in the world could we eat at a fancy restaurant and only spend $1?? Well, it just so happens that years ago (24 years to be exact), my family moved on Valentine's Day and didn't have any groceries in the new house. My dad brought home Taco Bell for dinner and it became a silly family tradition. Since Bryan, Charlie and I couldn't afford Charleston's due to the parameters of my project, it only made sense to get Taco Bell for Valentine's Day! Oy, what a megillah. Hopefully you followed all of that.

During our $ date, Charlie was a bit of fuss-bucket. If you read about my date from day 13, you would know that he has croup and isn't quite himself. For some reason, he was really upset that Bryan and I were eating and couldn't go play with him in his room. So a lot of our conversation was interrupted by Charlie's bellows of "DADDDDDYYYYYYY! I WANT YOU TO COME WITH ME!!!!!" And don't fall for the sad face below - he was totally faking it.


But we did manage to catch up about grown up things. Bryan is very supportive of my writing and is convinced I'm going to make it big. Who am I to argue with that? It should be noted that I accidentally ordered the wrong thing for him which meant that instead of eating 2 burritos and 2 tacos, he had 4 burritos. Yep, 4 gigantic burritos. I had my usual burrito and nachos and was quite sastified.

After dinner, we played with Charlie and tried to make sure he wasn't going to have any more meltdowns. We played catch, hop on pop, and gave treats to the dogs. Once again, Charlie's pants mysteriously disappeared. I'm sure in about 10 years he is going to be so mad at me for sharing that, but the kid seriously never wears pants.

To say that Bryan is a good father is an understatement. He is an attentive, adoring father. He spends most of his days watching Charlie and Kyle (see date #6) which has benefitted all three boys tremendously. And he can tolerate my special needs mother, which pretty much makes him qualified for saint-hood as far as I'm concerned. My respect and bond with my funny brother-in-law and stand-in Valentine is no laughing matter.

On deck for day 15....??????? I'll be seeing......someone!! (I hope!)