OT: tekbaby...
Tekboy:
Two hopes for you and a musing...
First, may your child bring you as much joy as our (now 15 1/2 year old) has given her mother and me. An absolute delight. I'd give you her entire list of characteristics, but I'd be accused of bragging<GGGGGG>.
Second, especially if you have a daughter, may she be a bit geeky in high school. Do you really want a daughter voted "the most popular girl in her class?" <VBG>
some other time we'll deal with the question of why, especially for a girl,
independent thinking + not suffering fools gladly = geek
But that's another conversation. Suffice it to say, my daughter's contemporaries aren't prepared to deal with her very effectively. Witness the guy last year (her first in high school) who was told 14 times that she WASN'T INTERSTED!!!!! He seemed to be an eternal optimist... maybe next time.
This, as you can imagine, puts her dear old dad in a quandary when she asks for the "male insight" to answer the question "Why can't he just give it up?" I've got to reply something like "because sometimes it works", or "because he's just stupid" or some other lame comment. Always took "no" literally myself the first time I heard it, so I'm at a loss <G>.
Anyway, the worst thing about parenthood (or maybe just growing older) is hearing your own parents' voices come right out of your mouth. Some years ago I had a bunch of nephews, ages 16-23 down helping me build my house for the summer. I found myself walking around the construction site muttering "Look at this. Can't those kids pick up these damn tools? Somebody's going to step on that framing square and bend the crap out of it". Stopped myself and looked around saying "Dad? Dad? are you hanging around here?" (my father had passed away some years before, which made it even stranger)...
Some years ago, before my daughter was born, I worked with a single dad with custody of two kids, 13 and 15 at the time. He was the first person (or maybe just the first man) I had met who said, out loud, "It's great. Every age has different issues, but it's all been wonderful". Experienced parents are supposed to hit you with horror stories... "Just wait 'til he's 2 (or 3 or 4. It's always a year or two older than your kid is) then it's hell". Bullfeathers. Each year has been a great!
Anyway, enough of this
Best of luck
Erick |
