Working Hard

My husband just called me from work to ask a question.

"Hello! I need to know who wrote 'War and Peace'?"

Now mind you, my husband is not a teacher or a writer. He does not work at a library, nor does his employment involve anything literary. In fact, he works for the government in a civilian capacity, and that is all that I can say (not to sound James Bond-ish or anything). So, I was taken a little aback by his odd and abrupt question.

"Leo Tolstoy. What do you need to know that for?"

"I'm on a break."

"Ooookaaaay... What are you doing?"

"Playing cards."

I myself have never played a card game that required me to know the author of a classic novel (and trust me, if one had existed, I would have played it!), and I am sure that my hubby isn't playing one. I hear laughing in the background, a bunch of guys drinking coffee and goofing around. My curiosity is truly piqued at this point, but my wonderings are interrupted.

"How do you spell that?"

"What? Spell? T-O-L-..."

"Nevermind, it's my turn to deal. Love you, bye"

The only logical thing that I can come up with is that my husband is helping a buddy do a crossword puzzle (he would never be doing one himself, unless required to do it under punishment of death). But why would they be doing a puzzle while playing cards? And why call me at home to answer it for them?

I can just picture the conversation...

Co-Worker 1:"Hey, Brian, do you know a seven-letter word for the author of 'War and Peace'?"

My Hubby:"'War and Peace'? Never heard of it, but I'll call my wife at home and ask her. She's read everything"

Co-Worker 1:"Thank you so much! I just could not have gone back to concentrating on my super-important job without knowing the answer to eleven-down!"

I am not implying that my husband is dumb; quite the contrary is true. But he hates reading books. Period. Even when we were in high school, he did all of his book reports by watching the movie. And the fact that he associates with guys at work who actually do the crossword puzzle makes me see him in a whole different light.

Also, on a side note, I wish I had a job where someone would pay me to sit down every hour and a half and play cards! I'm thankful that my hubby doesn't have to do extremely physically demanding labor to provide for us, and I'm thankful that his job pays well enough that I can stay home with our daughter. But he doesn't have to call me up to remind me just how hard his job really is by asking me random trivia questions and then cutting said conversation off because it is his turn to deal. All the while, asking me everyday, "What do you do all day long while you are at home?"


Ahh, the double standard of married life!