Art Museum

I invited two blokes to the art museum today as my guest to view the Tutankhamun exhibit presently on loan. The museum is half a block from my home. One guy has no interest in African history at all, although he is himself of African descent. The other guy is an ex Navy diver, not a Seal, but a regular diver. 

The ex Navy diver called yesterday to reschedule for today with much apologies. My African friend agreed. Today, the Navy guy didn't show up and didn't bother to call either. Mind, this was an offer at my expense, me extending myself, my home, my time, my access, my knowledge, which if I may say is considerable for a regular fellow. The thing is, I cannot bear the thought of my acquaintances letting an opportunity slip brilliant as Tutankhamun in their own city. They have no idea how rare that is. All they had to do is show up.  It surprises me that his training could leave so wide a gap, although my brother did caution me about that proclivity so it wasn't entirely unexpected.  

The African guy was more uninterested and more bored than any of the children that were literally crawling like ants throughout the exhibit, including the babies. Okay, maybe not the babies. 

They are so bright, these kids. (Can you believe every last one of them wear sneakers? The males, not the girls. Are leather shoes for boys a thing of the past, or what? I was in high school before I ever put on a pair of sneakers, and that was solely for gym class, and it felt weird.) I engaged a number of the children to see if there was a chance they might be as much a crackpot about Egyptian history as I was at their age. To my delight, they are. This gives me hope for a bright future in the hands of these charming and intelligent and very perceptive youths. Some of the insightful things that came out of their mouths would please any Egyptologist. And their manners and grace are exemplary. Then I compare that with my own compatriots and my heart sinks a little. To the African guy's defense, he did say at first he thought, "Uh oh, I'm going to hate this.," but then as he began to read the placards and hear the children in discussion, his mind began to open to the experience. Nonetheless, we did race through the exhibit, skipping some of the items that I know to be of great interest and no small importance. Still, through all  of that, the seed is planted. As for the diver, too bad.