Sibling Rivalry
my brother and i suffered massive disappointment today after finding out that one of our favorite restaurants recently changed their menu and nixxed BOTH our regular meals.
given the fact that i don't see my brother very much throughout the week, we always manage to make up time and conversation over frequent dinners. that way, we can vent and catch up, discuss family and friend issues, concerns, worries, etc. in private, without the interruptions of phone calls and errands or the listening ears of our parents/relatives. suffice to say, my brother and i have a very good relationship.
a few months back i was having dinner with a pair of siblings much like my brother and i. older sister and her younger brother. it seemed like your typical relationship between the two, the teasing and making fun of each other, the criticisms, the reminiscing ... all very familiar to me. well ... all familiar to me until the bill came.
between the two of them, they SPLIT the bill.
i wasn't sure how to contain the shock only because i would NEVER EVER even contemplate or suggest splitting the bill with my own brother. but that's exactly what happened with them. to sit there and watch them calculate what they owed and sort out who got what was actually kind of sad.
but since i'm not the kind to butt into family politics, i kept my mouth shut. i did however, bring it up with their other sibling (another sister) and she said she would've done likewise.
ummm .. wow.
if you ask your brother or sister out to dinner then you better damn well PAY FOR IT. or at least treat each other when you go out.
i bring this up only because i'm beginning to realize that maybe my brother and i are the anomalies. it turns out that a lot of siblings actually go dutch when they go out to dinner together which i still find to be pretty horrendous.
granted this isn't always the case (i'm glad to say that my brother and i aren't the only ones who don't split bills) but it sure is gauche. i would somewhat understand if you weren't on good terms with your sibling in the first place but then i couldn't imagine why you would want to have dinner with them. but if you do, then how terribly stingy is that? it's the equivalent of inviting your parents out to dinner and then expecting them to front their portion of the bill. i don't think it should be any different for another member of your immediate family.
because when it comes down to the wire (or you just happened to forget your wallet), it's nice to have family to depend on ... if not at least for a delicious meal.
given the fact that i don't see my brother very much throughout the week, we always manage to make up time and conversation over frequent dinners. that way, we can vent and catch up, discuss family and friend issues, concerns, worries, etc. in private, without the interruptions of phone calls and errands or the listening ears of our parents/relatives. suffice to say, my brother and i have a very good relationship.
a few months back i was having dinner with a pair of siblings much like my brother and i. older sister and her younger brother. it seemed like your typical relationship between the two, the teasing and making fun of each other, the criticisms, the reminiscing ... all very familiar to me. well ... all familiar to me until the bill came.
between the two of them, they SPLIT the bill.
i wasn't sure how to contain the shock only because i would NEVER EVER even contemplate or suggest splitting the bill with my own brother. but that's exactly what happened with them. to sit there and watch them calculate what they owed and sort out who got what was actually kind of sad.
but since i'm not the kind to butt into family politics, i kept my mouth shut. i did however, bring it up with their other sibling (another sister) and she said she would've done likewise.
ummm .. wow.
if you ask your brother or sister out to dinner then you better damn well PAY FOR IT. or at least treat each other when you go out.
i bring this up only because i'm beginning to realize that maybe my brother and i are the anomalies. it turns out that a lot of siblings actually go dutch when they go out to dinner together which i still find to be pretty horrendous.
granted this isn't always the case (i'm glad to say that my brother and i aren't the only ones who don't split bills) but it sure is gauche. i would somewhat understand if you weren't on good terms with your sibling in the first place but then i couldn't imagine why you would want to have dinner with them. but if you do, then how terribly stingy is that? it's the equivalent of inviting your parents out to dinner and then expecting them to front their portion of the bill. i don't think it should be any different for another member of your immediate family.
because when it comes down to the wire (or you just happened to forget your wallet), it's nice to have family to depend on ... if not at least for a delicious meal.
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