Dad day in the doctor’s waiting room

Today I had to take Baby Mojo to the doctor.    After check in we went into the “well patient” waiting area where they have a couple toys and a movie playing.    It was unique today because every parent with their child was a dad.   Baby Mojo settled on the floor and started playing with another boy while his father and I chatted about our kids. 

When the nurse came for the next patient she said, “Wow, it looks like Dad Day in the waiting room”.  With one less dad in the waiting room I could focus my attention to Toy Story 2, which was playing on television.    I defy anybody to not get sucked into watching that movie.  It’s like a giant sink hole in Florida, except in a good way, unless it was sucking up one of those neon t-shirt shops, then it’s still in a good way. 

I started watching the movie when the fake Buzz Lightyear goes into the toy collector’s apartment.  The next scene was the flashback scene with Jessie the singing cowgirl, in song going back to tell the story of how she came to be a neglected toy.  When I first saw the movie on television over the summer I cried like a baby during that scene.  Thankfully my wife wasn’t around to witness her weepy mess of a husband falling apart to an animated feature.  Actually, to be 100% accurate, tears didn’t stream, but the eyes sure did get moist. 

Unfortunately when I saw the scene in the waiting room for the doctor’s office my eyes started to well up again.  As I was in a pack of dads and at the risk of cashing in my man card for a long, long time, I went up to Baby Mojo and started to play with him.   Quick Daddy Mojo, think about baseball, pluck a nose hair, stub your toe, run into the sharp edge of a wall-anything-and please don’t call us now to see the doctor.

Oy, I almost had to check myself to see if I was ovulating.  Crying in the doctor’s office while Toy Story 2 is playing?  It was even to a Sarah McLaughlin song, who I’m not a fan of, but that song to that animation can reduce things to a shadow of what they are.

I heard about men crying during Toy Story 3.  There were loads of news articles when the movie came out and I didn’t cast any weight behind them, but I do now.   

My wife has never seen Toy Story and she has repeatedly told me that she doesn’t like “cartoons”.    She insists that she’ll see animated movies when Baby Mojo is old enough to enjoy them, but not before then.  That’s her playful way of making fun of me.   Mercifully she’s stopped calling my other favorite genre, karate or ninja movies and has gone to the more acceptable term, ‘martial arts’. 

If you haven’t seen Toy Story 2 I invite you to take the challenge and evaluate my man card status.  Watch the video and see if you don’t tear up.  Me, I’ll reserve some time when the wife isn’t home and watch Toy Story 3-with a pair of pliers ready to yank some nose hair when appropriate.