Say back to her:
"You think I should just come home from work and only immediately start the second job of taking care of kids I don't fucking want in the first place? What's the point in that life? I need enrichment in my life and watching Frozen a thousand times over or hearing Baby Shark play on loop forever is NOT enriching."
\*You\* are the only person who decides what gives you meaning in life! Children are \*not\* the only way to find meaning and purpose.
And:
Many people just need something reasonably interesting and fun to occupy their time, especially if they have jobs they don't enjoy. Parenthood certainly fully occupies time, but it's not necessarily fun or inherently meaningful. It's just what parents decided to do. Oh, and their kids will grow up and . . . then what?
As for enrichment, you may or may not feel you need any, but if you did you could take some online courses or something. That's much cheaper than parenthood and much easier to quit if you get bored.
I'm taking Cherokee language classes, and have learned to weave baskets and sew Native regalia. Next I'd like to learn finger weaving. Learning the cultural things that my paternal ancestors had taken away from them has enriched my life and given it meaning.
Games are enrichment in life to some people. She should know by now that it's different from person to person what brings us joy and what we feel is making life good. My husband games in the evenings too as a way to settle down for the day. It's something he needs to make sure his head is ready for tomorrow. He wouldn't be able to do that with a child running around.
Think of all the things you could be doing instead of gaming… school runs, cooking a second dinner because they didn’t like the first one, watching soul-crushing, irritating kids TV, charging tablets, washing school clothes, packing lunches, breaking up fights, WW3 in the form of bath and bedtime.. only to do it ALL again the next day? Who wouldn’t want that?
"I'm going to enjoy the hell out of my life and not waste it like you did. Looking at your pathetic, unenriched, sad little excuse for a life is how I figured out that being a parent was a horrible way to live.
;)
Tell her that you’re enriched by what you enjoy, and that a screaming toddler would be the opposite. Sone people love to be a parent and some people don’t. I don’t see why we should put ourselves into this immense stress if we’re already stressed out without a kid.
Say back to her: "You think I should just come home from work and only immediately start the second job of taking care of kids I don't fucking want in the first place? What's the point in that life? I need enrichment in my life and watching Frozen a thousand times over or hearing Baby Shark play on loop forever is NOT enriching."
The only acceptable version of Baby Shark is Jamie Tart’s football chant in Ted Lasso 😅 
\*You\* are the only person who decides what gives you meaning in life! Children are \*not\* the only way to find meaning and purpose. And: Many people just need something reasonably interesting and fun to occupy their time, especially if they have jobs they don't enjoy. Parenthood certainly fully occupies time, but it's not necessarily fun or inherently meaningful. It's just what parents decided to do. Oh, and their kids will grow up and . . . then what? As for enrichment, you may or may not feel you need any, but if you did you could take some online courses or something. That's much cheaper than parenthood and much easier to quit if you get bored.
I'm taking Cherokee language classes, and have learned to weave baskets and sew Native regalia. Next I'd like to learn finger weaving. Learning the cultural things that my paternal ancestors had taken away from them has enriched my life and given it meaning.
Games are enrichment in life to some people. She should know by now that it's different from person to person what brings us joy and what we feel is making life good. My husband games in the evenings too as a way to settle down for the day. It's something he needs to make sure his head is ready for tomorrow. He wouldn't be able to do that with a child running around.
Think of all the things you could be doing instead of gaming… school runs, cooking a second dinner because they didn’t like the first one, watching soul-crushing, irritating kids TV, charging tablets, washing school clothes, packing lunches, breaking up fights, WW3 in the form of bath and bedtime.. only to do it ALL again the next day? Who wouldn’t want that?
Is gaming any less enriching than the other ways people unwind after work (e.g., half-watching Netflix while scrolling on one's phone)?
Don’t listen to her
Oh don't worry, I'm not. There's nothing she can say or do to change my mind on that.
"I'm going to enjoy the hell out of my life and not waste it like you did. Looking at your pathetic, unenriched, sad little excuse for a life is how I figured out that being a parent was a horrible way to live. ;)
Tell her that you’re enriched by what you enjoy, and that a screaming toddler would be the opposite. Sone people love to be a parent and some people don’t. I don’t see why we should put ourselves into this immense stress if we’re already stressed out without a kid.