>Summer Fridays are special for me and Amigo. We go out to lunch. We call it Funday Friday, and we really enjoy it. We choose a different restaurant each time unless something calls for an old favorite. If Dad has the day off or La Petite is coming along, we might pick a favorite that we think they’d like and share it with them. Few of our choices are chains, unless they are a statewide or regional type of place. We prefer locally owned eateries, whether diners, family style restaurants, or even pubs/bars with a good menu.
Amigo has learned a lot of social skills from these Funday Fridays. He knows how to ask for a table for two, nonsmoking (outside the city limits, that is: our city has a smoking ban in public places), and then he asks if they have a Braille menu.
This is often a challenge. We’ve been pleasantly surprised at the number of places that actually have a Braille menu, even though sometimes the host or hostess has to ask a manager to help find it. When they have a Braille menu, Amigo can figure out his own order, and he sometimes even recommends something to me.
He has also learned a lot of basic skills like putting a straw in a glass, eating shrimp with the tail still on, handling a big sandwich or burger, and asking for a take-home box if the portions are large. It’s rare that he needs the last one; he is fifteen, after all. Leftovers don’t happen very often on his plate.
But even though he learns a lot while we’re out, that’s not the real purpose of Funday Friday. We do it because we enjoy doing something special together. It’s quality time at its best, from the choice of restaurant to the choice of dessert. We chat about random things, radio, books, current events, weather, anything that’s on our minds. Sometimes he makes friends with the waitstaff, and then a return trip is almost required.
Funday Fridays are now over for the summer. When school starts we’ll leave this special routine behind — until next summer. Who knows? There might be a few new places in town we need to try.