My custody schedule is such that the parent who has them drops them off at school or camp or whatever on Friday morning, and then the other parent picks them up when they are done. Usually this has the added side benefit of minimizing my interaction with that jackass, but the jackass switched things all up this summer for his own convenience. He’s having his wife, who’s a teacher, watch the kids during most of the summer, and laid it on thick to me about the importance of dropping them off and picking them up on time to minimize the inconvenience to her. I don’t know who he thinks he’s talking to, because I’m the one who’s chronically punctual, and she has yet to even be home when I’ve gone to pick them up at my alloted time, but that’s the kind of asshole he is.

He couched the change in terms of making it better for the kids, and it’s true; they were getting a little bored at their old after-school care. But they’re bored at his place too, and he lied. The only reason he wanted to switch was to save money. I have enough money; I can send my kid to karate school and pick him up when it’s convenient to me. I’m not the one who went and saddled myself with a fucking McMansion and a mortgage payment to go with it.

And for the month that his wife is back at work but the kids are still out of school, that just meant that they had to go somewhere new and just as far for me to travel. Seamus likes it well enough, but John’s not very sports-oriented, and is bored silly at this new place.

So when I found out about Space Camp, I jumped on the opportunity. Sure, it cost three times as much as regular day camp, but it’s exactly the kind of thing that would interest John, and trust me, that kid needs all of the social interaction he can get. Only trouble is, it gets out at 3 and I don’t get off work until 5.

No big deal; I’m picking him up and running him home. He’s old enough to stay home for a couple of hours. And so, I planned my camping trip (months ago!) to leave at noon on Friday, after I dropped them both off.

Jackass only thinks just now to casually drop that neither he nor his wife will be able to pick up the kids until 5 on that day. And he’s not even at work; he’s off doing some jackass thing. As if his vacation is so much more important than mine that he can blow off his parental responsibilities just like that. Because, of course, I have no life and will be glad to stay late.

Never mind that that puts me down at Pismo well after dark, and I’ll have to navigate the beach by myself. Never mind that he’s the one violating the custody agreement. And when I got ticked at him, he had the nerve to throw it in my face that I couldn’t pick Seamus up at the pool at 4 one day last week (on an hour’s notice no less.) Sorry, but I’m pretty sure actually working for a living trumps farting around with racecars or what-the-fuck-ever he’s doing. I have two jobs, asshole. I can’t drop everytihng to get a kid your wife is supposed to be watching. Y’all should have planned that one better between yourselves.

I may end up taking John from Space Camp down to the other camp, paying them extra, and still getting on the road late. God, I’m so pissed that my blood pressure is going through the roof. I’m entirely ashamed that I ever married such a prick, much less reproduced with him. I’d feel much better if my children didn’t have such a dominant dickhead gene.

SUCH a jackass!