What Were They Thinking?

I spent a while in a doctor's waiting room this afternoon. It happened to be a new waiting room for me because urology is a new specialty I require as of late. The office was in one of three "malls" for physicians attached to the newest mega-hospital in our region. The room was rather small - 18 seats total - with barely enough room to cross your legs without kicking your neighbor. I was alone. A couple of my fellow patients in waiting had spouses along. There were four or five empty seats in the room.

Into this space entered two other patients-in-waiting. Each of them had a spouse. Plenty of room, right? Right - except for the kids - three of them - PER COUPLE. Four or five seats divided by 10 people in an already "square-foot challenged" space.

One couple had three daughters that I'd guess were 10, 12 and 15. Dad was the patient, obviously well known to the office staff and popular with them.

The other couple had son/daughter/son - I'd guess 9, 7 and 4. Mom was the patient. Dad, who had come along to "help" promptly appropriated one of the open seats for himself and fell asleep. Mom was feeling less than 100% and was happy to let the 9 & 7 year old have a cell phone apiece to play games -- with the SOUND ON...LOUD. The 4 year old, middle name had to be Flubber, didn't have anything to play with and wanted what brother and sister had.

When to door to the "inner sanctum" opened and my name was called, it was like the gates of heaven had opened.