Feeling "Culture"

In some ways, being a parent of young children is like being a cheapskate: you are seriously limited in the options of what you can do. But even a parent/cheapskate can find art, poetry, and cultural enjoyment. Here are some ways.

Visit Museums. Art museums can actually be a good place for children. I brought my two-year-old to the Minneapolis Institute of Arts recently. There are big open spaces (lots of room for walking without fear of the child touching something he shouldn’t), and there are colorful pictures and big sculptures everywhere. My son walked around holding my hand going “Whoa.” Whoa.” “Whoa.” He loved it (it's surprising how much modern art is exactly what toddlers like to look at), and I got to look at art. And it is free.

Visit Libraries. A free place to go, and there are sometimes culture events going on. Most public libraries are extremely welcoming to children.

Get Netflix. If you’re raising little kids, you probably aren’t going to go to a lot of movies. Resign yourself to being six months behind and watch the movie when it reaches DVD. Being behind comes with advantages: sometimes after the buzz for a film dies down, you realize you really don’t want to see it.

Subscribe to Magazines. You don’t get to go anywhere, but while your children play on the floor in front of you, you can be flipping through The New Yorker.

Attend Religious Worship. Think about it: most traditional religious services involve performance of ancient rituals, reading of ancient texts, singing of historical hymns. There's poetry there.

Drink coffee. I go to malls once or twice a week. It’s a crass and commercial place to be, but it is a free, weather-controlled place to bring children and walk around getting exercise. And when I go there, I can get a soy latte at Caribou Coffee. And I ask you: what’s more bourgeoisie than a latte? This isn’t actually culture, but it is about the perception of culture: sitting and drinking a latte makes me feel like I'm doing something interesting.

Any other ideas?