Today, at the doctors office, I was sitting in an uncomfortable chair, engrossed in some two year old issue of Family Circle, when a man walks into the waiting room, holding what looked to me like nothing short of a portable plastic beer cooler. Though Family Circle was truly fascinating, I put it down immediately as I was simply struck by this man with the heavy coat and beer cooler. Being it was a doctors office after all, I was excited by the potential disruption he might bring to the otherwise dire predictability of a suburban doctor’s office. But within moments, I was greatly dissapointed to find out there was not such prospect of disruption as I soon discovered he was only carrying his newbord kid in a plastic car seat. But within mere seconds again, I was struck again, thinking “how strange than an middle aged American man was taking his kid by himself to the doctors office.” I mean I know it is the 21st century and all, but it is rare to be in a doctors office and have the male side of the couple be with the kids, especially alone. But his other female half finally walked in, and the momentary lapse out of normality vanished… Not only no drunk man, but it was typical hetreonormativity in La Grange, as usual.

But I did not take this event in stride, for I thought to myself: given the endless market for consumer goods in our great society, why not make a baby seat a two-in-one gizmo –> a baby car seat and beer cooler in one? I mean the plastic is insulating and there is aready a good sizeable dip to stash the beer. All you would need is a nice fitting, snug top and vualla –> a good to go beer storage unit that moreover keeps your beer *as safe as your baby* while you are driving the precious goods to your family outing or fishing trip with the guys.

Given the article I was reading in Family Circle (on husbands playing second fiddle to the newborn and thus feeling loathsome and jealous), it seemd to me that this fine invention of mine was not only nifty, but could perhaps make a worthwhile, positive psychological contribution to the treacherous state that becomes marriage when a newborn kid hits the scene? Thus this is a tool that is pragmatic in more ways than one…