Dad: If you ever get arrested, you're spending the night in jail and I'll think about coming to get you the next day.
Me: Um ok
That was how I stayed out of trouble in high school and my early twenties. I knew he meant business. I'm an only child and a daddy's girl. My dad would do anything for me but if he got a call to come get my stupid ass outta jail? That's not on the list of things to do.
I was spanked when I was a kid and I can still now, when I close my eyes, smell the paneling from the corner that I resided in for a good chunk of the 7 years we lived in N. Charleston, SC. (On a side note, N. Charleston is something like the 10th most violent city in the US. Talking with my best friend the other night, whose parents still live in our old neighborhood, and we both don't recall any violence when we lived there. Maybe we blocked it out of our heads.) That paneling though? Yikes, if I was really in trouble you could see the condensation from my breath on the "wood". I don't miss those days.
Last night at work, a boy was picked up for shoplifting. I was the only one available to go in the security office as a witness (and really people, one of my cashiers wanted to go in there but I was not liking him at all last night and I said no, I'm going. Evil looks from him. Muwahahaha, I get those all the time from my kid. They mean nothing I tell you, nothing!)
I felt bad for the kid. He looked like he hadn't bathed in a few days (and as a parent, I can't hold that against him. When I was on maternity leave, I once went 6 days with no shower, just washcloth "baths". I'm more regular now. Ha! Regular! Ok, moving on). Security asked his age and then said something about him probably not knowing his SS# because of his age and the kid goes "Obviously I don't know it" and I almost fell off the chair. It was so snarky and I was shocked. Here's a kid busted for stealing two pieces of candy. I didn't feel bad after that. The 5-Oh show up and I go back out to the floor. I was talking with another associate and this kid came up and asked if he could talk to me (he was the cousin of the other kid). I said sure and he got tears in his eyes and said he took some gum and wanted to make it right and held out a dollar. Now seriously people, I'm a sucker for a kid who cries especially when they are saying sorry. It makes me forget all the wrongs they ever done did. I rang the boy up and was in Mom Mode the whole time. "Your cousin is in there getting a ticket from the cops, your Mom is embarressed that this happened, you guys can not be doing this. You're going to ruin your lives. If you come in here again, we'll be watching you." I think the kid almost peed his pants. I felt better about the world because of his sincerety.
Then I remembered he's 10 and he saw the neon SUCKER sign on my head. Dammit.
Me: Um ok
That was how I stayed out of trouble in high school and my early twenties. I knew he meant business. I'm an only child and a daddy's girl. My dad would do anything for me but if he got a call to come get my stupid ass outta jail? That's not on the list of things to do.
I was spanked when I was a kid and I can still now, when I close my eyes, smell the paneling from the corner that I resided in for a good chunk of the 7 years we lived in N. Charleston, SC. (On a side note, N. Charleston is something like the 10th most violent city in the US. Talking with my best friend the other night, whose parents still live in our old neighborhood, and we both don't recall any violence when we lived there. Maybe we blocked it out of our heads.) That paneling though? Yikes, if I was really in trouble you could see the condensation from my breath on the "wood". I don't miss those days.
Last night at work, a boy was picked up for shoplifting. I was the only one available to go in the security office as a witness (and really people, one of my cashiers wanted to go in there but I was not liking him at all last night and I said no, I'm going. Evil looks from him. Muwahahaha, I get those all the time from my kid. They mean nothing I tell you, nothing!)
I felt bad for the kid. He looked like he hadn't bathed in a few days (and as a parent, I can't hold that against him. When I was on maternity leave, I once went 6 days with no shower, just washcloth "baths". I'm more regular now. Ha! Regular! Ok, moving on). Security asked his age and then said something about him probably not knowing his SS# because of his age and the kid goes "Obviously I don't know it" and I almost fell off the chair. It was so snarky and I was shocked. Here's a kid busted for stealing two pieces of candy. I didn't feel bad after that. The 5-Oh show up and I go back out to the floor. I was talking with another associate and this kid came up and asked if he could talk to me (he was the cousin of the other kid). I said sure and he got tears in his eyes and said he took some gum and wanted to make it right and held out a dollar. Now seriously people, I'm a sucker for a kid who cries especially when they are saying sorry. It makes me forget all the wrongs they ever done did. I rang the boy up and was in Mom Mode the whole time. "Your cousin is in there getting a ticket from the cops, your Mom is embarressed that this happened, you guys can not be doing this. You're going to ruin your lives. If you come in here again, we'll be watching you." I think the kid almost peed his pants. I felt better about the world because of his sincerety.
Then I remembered he's 10 and he saw the neon SUCKER sign on my head. Dammit.
Comments
Just think what you might have saved that kid...? Hopefully, he has the sense to realize what you've saved him, and will retain it...