Welcome to Greg Olear, author of father-mucker.
Josh Lansky is a man on the brink. And father-mucker is the story of a day in his crazy life.
Josh is a second-rate screenwriter, fledgling freelancer, and stay-at-home dad of two preschoolers. He has managed to keep it together until one Friday morning when he takes his children to playgroup. His wife is away on yet another business trip. And one of the mothers tells him that his wife may be having an extra-marital affair.
Josh needs a break. Sadly, he’s not going to get one.
father-mucker is hailed as a refreshingly honest, but raucously funny look at marriage and parenting in the twenty-first century.
That’s Not What Friends Are For
(On how it’s not cool for married stay-at-home dads and married stay-at-home moms to hang out)
by
Greg Olear
The assigned reading in my high school English classes included many novels that struck me as anachronistic, if not downright obsolete: some long-dead white guy investing hundreds of thousands of words and a half dozen subplots to make a grand point about social injustice that had become, in the intervening years, moot.
One short story we read involved a couple who couldn’t check into a hotel room because they were — shudder to think — not married. Would the owners of a B&B refuse a room to an unwed man and woman today? Would they even notice? They’re proprietors, not improprietors!
And I graduated from high school in 1991. Twenty years later, the Secretary of State, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, and three Supreme Court justices are female; the notion of a woman being “ruined” by premarital sex and/or adultery — a prominent plot point in countless Victorian novels — is almost unthinkable.
If sixteen-year-old Tess of the d’Urbervilles was knocked up by her rakish cousin now, she wouldn’t be apprehended on one of the Stonehenge slabs — she’d star in the next season of MTV’s Teen Mom.
A modern-day Anna Karenina would hardly be a social pariah for running off with the dashing Vronksy; she’d sooner turn up on TMZ than the cold Russian train tracks.
And the 2011 Emma Bovary, as a “Real Housewife of Rouen,” would be a celebrity spokeswoman for debt relief companies and frequent guest on The View.
But for all the astonishing strides made by women in the last century — the 19th Amendment has only been on the books since 1920, remember — the anti-feminist Victorian notion of impropriety lives on.
For example: it is considered inappropriate for married stay-at-home dads and married stay-at-home moms to be close friends. They can trade gossip at playdates, carpool with the kids, chat in the supermarket, and yuck it up at dinner parties, yes. But spending time together unchaperoned — whether by other adults or their children — is widely regarded as improper.
A stay-at-home dad can’t call up a stay-at-home mom and propose an evening à deux at the local watering hole. He just can’t. The thinking here is obvious: the likelihood of stay-at-home dad and stay-at-home mom knocking back a half dozen inhibition-destroying mixed drinks and repairing to the bathroom, minivan, or Motel 6 to put the “happy” in happy hour is significantly reduced if the two stay-at-homers stay at home with their respective spouses. Thus, the tacit “Impropriety Rule.”
A draconian prohibition, perhaps — like the king ordering every spindle in the kingdom burned for fear of a single one pricking Sleeping Beauty’s finger — but then, it’s not like drunken infidelity doesn’t happen. For all I know, the Impropriety Rule is a good one.
On the other hand, do we really need, or want, the social mores of yesteryear to determine whom we can befriend? What if stay-at-home dad and stay-at-home mom just need to blow off steam after a hard day at work – full-time parenting, I think we can all agree, is work — just like people with more traditional jobs? What if there’s nothing untoward in their intentions? Why is that bad?
What the Impropriety Rule suggests is that we don’t, as a society, trust stay-at-home dad and stay-at-home mom to be alone together, for fear that they will be Led Into Temptation by that most seductive of deadly sins, Lust. That sounds like a fear-based sermon from the 1800’s, not an evolved 21st-century rationale. And it’s decidedly anti-woman, casting stay-at-home mom as Eve.
Furthermore, even if stay-at-home dad and stay-at-home mom have the hots for each other, imposing a restriction on their relationship won’t necessarily cool those flames of passion. That’s another thing I learned from reading all those books in high school: obstacles only abet Lust. Would Romeo and Juliet have fallen so head-over-heels in love if their parents had encouraged them to be together?
Again, I’m not necessarily advocating for an overthrow of the Impropriety Rule. But the reality is, there are (suddenly) more stay-at-home dads now than ever before, and it’s only natural that they should cultivate friendships with other stay-at-home parents, regardless of gender. That they aren’t allowed to do so may not be sufficient fodder for a Dickens novel, but that doesn’t make it just.
Meet Greg
His work has also appeared at The Rumpus, The Millions, Babble.com, Chronogram, and Hudson Valley Magazine.
Greg teaches fiction writing at Manhattanville College and lives in New Paltz, New York with his family.
Connect with Greg on Facebook or Twitter.
Click here to read my review of father-mucker
Enter to win a copy of father-mucker
Author Greg Olear has generously provided one copy of father-mucker to be awarded to one lucky Colloquium reader!
21 Comments
The title alone makes this a must read. Sounds awesome thanks
I think I do agree with the author, it seems like a bit of a stereotype, but if I’m honest-it was what I thought when I head the word “stay-at-home”
This post is fascinating! I’ve never thought about how stay-at-home mom and dad’s hanging out would be viewed. I do agree with Greg – that it would be viewed as taboo, but don’t think it should be. I feel you either trust your mate or you don’t.
I’d love to read this book. I’ve read so few books with a father’s point of view. This sounds like a story I’d definitely be sucked into. Thanks for the opportunity to win this book. 🙂
You always have fabulous interviews, book reviews, and giveaways! Thank you so much.
I do agree with him
mamabunny13 at gmail dot com
I think this book looks great. I have been reading about it on Amazon and I think its neat its such a different take on marriage. Usually you see things from the woman’s point of view, not the husband’s. Looking forward to reading this one 🙂
I do agree, even if it pains me to say it. People tend to look at a man and a woman as always having maybe something more going on than just being friends, whereas they wouldn’t do that with two women or two men.
I do agree there is a different view for stay at home moms and stay at home dads. There shouldn’t be in my opinion.
I can see why people would question their motives and some would be distrustful of the relationship. However, if you are in a relationship with someone you can trust, it shouldn’t be an issue.
Well, with morals not as good nowadays as used to be, I don’t think men and women stay-at-home parents should hang out together. They may get bored and end up doing something they didn’t plan on doing while the kids are asleep.
I agree with his view, it’s sad but true. But I know I’d be the jealous spouse! It’s not always a matter of trust…emotion is always a factor.
nineteen19 at blackfoot dot net
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Thanks for featuring Greg on your blog!
People will always gossip about different spouses hanging out together alone or a spouse hanging out with a single person alone. To me, it wouldn’t matter unless an affair does happen which would prove that there was something wrong in the main relationship. Rumors are just rumors…. most of the time.
I think that it is absolutely inappropriate for a stay-at-home dad and a stay-at-home mom to have a close friendship. I understand what everyone said about trust and stereotypes and everything else. But my thoughts are, just because I’m sure my husband wouldn’t cheat on me doesn’t mean I want him to seek out situations that could tempt him to do so. I’m not talking about lust. To my way of thinking the intimacy of friendship could be more dangerous to a relationship than an impulsive and quickly regretted one night stand (not that I would condone that) But friendship can easily lead to something more with real feelings involved. Maybe some antiquated ideals were not altogether wrong.
Oh, I’m so torn! Being a tomboy, I’ve grown up hanging out with guys, and it’s what I’m comfortable with. However when you are married, doing so can really be playing with fire. It is just too, too easy to forget yourself and get caught up in the moment and forget your boundaries.
I’m inclined to agree with Greg’s observations about friendships between opposite sexes. It’s not that way just with stay-at-home parents but opposite sex relationship in general, in my opinion. All my life, I’ve had more friendships with males than females, and those “friendships” were always perceived as more than just a friendship when in actuality they weren’t. I just think that humanity in general doesn’t think that members of the opposite sex can handle being “just friends!”
Anyway, the book’s title is very clever and it sounds like a fantastic read. Thanks for the giveaway!
darlenesbooknook at gmail dot com
I would say I agree.
I agree. But men and women aren’t supposed to be friends outside of the workplace either for the same reasons. I don’t think it’s right but people will always question if something is going on or not.
lkish77123 at gmail dot com
I sort of disagree…..Maybe some people would be fine with it…but I don’t think I would be.
I think they should be able to be friends–and if more happens well then the really did not take the marriage vows seriously–they are adults.
I agree. I think that many women would not want their stay at home husbands hanging out with stay at home moms.