funky moments in friendship

my son and one of his best buddies since kindergarten (now both in the fourth grade) are experiencing some growing pains in their friendship. they were having a playdate (for some reason that is what hanging out called these days) at our house and i am telling you..it felt like a bad date.
usually a playdate for my kids means a big old break for me...the kids keep each other occupied while i tend to my adult activities, like reading trashy magazines.
anyhow, on this particular playdate, these guys just were not connecting. i am talking awkward...like long silences awkward.i can't really get a grasp on what is happening in the friendship, i just think they are developing different interests and not having a lot in common right now. 
 not only couldn't they figure out what to do together, soon they kept coming to me for ideas. HOLD UP...now it is serious...i just wanna read my magazine, ok?
i had to think of something fast, all of my suggestions were met with zero enthusiasm...jump on the trampoline? nah. ride bikes? nope. play basketball? no. throw the baseball around? no way. make some art? yuck.
in a moment of desperation (I HAD TO READ ABOUT JENNIFER ANNISTON'S NEW HAIRDO)i told the boys to just go out in the garage , get some wood and tools and make something.
Finally...could it be...is that...a glimmer of interest in both sets of eyes? YES! enthusiasm!!!! as both of them ran out to the garage, i settled back to figure out just exactly what is going on between Scarlett Johansen and Sean Penn when it occurred to me...did i really just send two 10 year old boys out to the garage to play with power tools...shit...voyeuristic tendencies, you will just have to wait.
Anyhow, cut to the chase, these guys did end up bonding over a SUPERVISED table building activity (they even used an electric saw!!!). They were happy, my son got a new nightstand...and you know what? I think I may have enjoyed myself more than I would have reading my junky old magazine...

example of 10 year old literature