He Doesn't Even Look Like Me, Let Alone Act Like Me.
I don't like very many people. I have my friends, and I really like them, but I don't really like many others. I would call that not liking very many people. Especially the stupid ones. I've realized each year that there are more than I thought. I don't even mean technically stupid, but more like...well, sometimes I mean technically stupid, but also people who are only worried about something when it will directly affect them and to hell with anyone else's feelings or how it might affect them. I especially don't really like strangers, and I don't usually make the first move to talk to someone.
Bear with me, I'm tired and not sure I'm making much sense.
All of that stuff up there, it is leading to something.
While I may not like talking to people I don't really know, my child LOVES to.
I seem to have been "blessed" with a very precocious child. He loves EVERYONE and will talk to them all at length. I almost panic every time. Cause now I might actually have to talk to someone who I don't necessarily know. Maybe I am just afraid of strangers? And some days he's just so dorky about it, and people always laugh and say "how cute" and "isn't he adorable", and I want to nod and say oh yes, adorably annoying. Last night he took it upon himself to show off for the neighbors. He is so personable that he just wants to talk to everyone.
Adults come to or even NEAR my house and he has to be right up in their face.
Or to the cashiers at the grocery store, or to the waiter who he asks for a bunch of damn ranch that he doesn't even eat. I've seen first hand how this makes some people uncomfortable. Hell, I'm uncomfortable when a child talks to me, should I say something back, or should I not talk to them since I am a stranger? Half the time I wonder if people don't say "he's cute", or "that's cute" because I am a customer and they don't want to offend me.
People don't put him off, I haven't had anyone get irritated or said something mean, so instead I am the mean one and not really just trying to help the person out by letting them get on with their JOB. It gets to the point where I don't want to take him out in public.
And I shouldn't say I've never had anyone get annoyed, I actually had a guy FLIP HIM OFF once. I think. We were walking to day care and Derek liked to wave at all the cars, he must have been 4, I think, and this guy saw him waving and flashed up the bird. But MAYBE the guy only had one finger and was waving back?
Yeah, right. I just don't see any damn reason why the guy would flip us off just cause Derek was waving.
But we're teaching him. He already says he hates hippies. When I pressed him to elaborate, he could only give me stereotypes most likely seen in cartoons, and then said what he really meant was that he hates "stupid" hippies. So I guess we're getting somewhere. ;)
Something else I've learned only through being a parent? How easy it is to be snappy at them. I was always so confused, like what the hell did I do wrong?
The answer would most likely be that I asked for something regarding money. He asks all the time why we don't have this or that, and can we just get air conditioning?
I get snappy cause I feel bad and annoyed. I try and make his life comfortable and there is so much that he has that I didn't and he doesn't seem to understand. So I get frustrated and irritated and snap at him. I'm sure he doesn't understand and I feel bad when I am thinking about it logically, but then I turn around and I'm hot too, and irritated and he says something about air conditioning and I'm like..yeah, we could, if you want to ditch the cable, we can save that money and buy air conditioners.
And then he says no, and we re-cycle.
We're good like that.
In other Derek news, he's having a lot of fun playing with friends around the neighborhood and I'm signing him up for swimming lessons tomorrow. He's pretty excited about swimming almost-daily for two weeks.
With this heat, I would be too. It's too bad the classes aren't at 4 when it's really hot.
Bear with me, I'm tired and not sure I'm making much sense.
All of that stuff up there, it is leading to something.
While I may not like talking to people I don't really know, my child LOVES to.
I seem to have been "blessed" with a very precocious child. He loves EVERYONE and will talk to them all at length. I almost panic every time. Cause now I might actually have to talk to someone who I don't necessarily know. Maybe I am just afraid of strangers? And some days he's just so dorky about it, and people always laugh and say "how cute" and "isn't he adorable", and I want to nod and say oh yes, adorably annoying. Last night he took it upon himself to show off for the neighbors. He is so personable that he just wants to talk to everyone.
Adults come to or even NEAR my house and he has to be right up in their face.
Or to the cashiers at the grocery store, or to the waiter who he asks for a bunch of damn ranch that he doesn't even eat. I've seen first hand how this makes some people uncomfortable. Hell, I'm uncomfortable when a child talks to me, should I say something back, or should I not talk to them since I am a stranger? Half the time I wonder if people don't say "he's cute", or "that's cute" because I am a customer and they don't want to offend me.
People don't put him off, I haven't had anyone get irritated or said something mean, so instead I am the mean one and not really just trying to help the person out by letting them get on with their JOB. It gets to the point where I don't want to take him out in public.
And I shouldn't say I've never had anyone get annoyed, I actually had a guy FLIP HIM OFF once. I think. We were walking to day care and Derek liked to wave at all the cars, he must have been 4, I think, and this guy saw him waving and flashed up the bird. But MAYBE the guy only had one finger and was waving back?
Yeah, right. I just don't see any damn reason why the guy would flip us off just cause Derek was waving.
But we're teaching him. He already says he hates hippies. When I pressed him to elaborate, he could only give me stereotypes most likely seen in cartoons, and then said what he really meant was that he hates "stupid" hippies. So I guess we're getting somewhere. ;)
Something else I've learned only through being a parent? How easy it is to be snappy at them. I was always so confused, like what the hell did I do wrong?
The answer would most likely be that I asked for something regarding money. He asks all the time why we don't have this or that, and can we just get air conditioning?
I get snappy cause I feel bad and annoyed. I try and make his life comfortable and there is so much that he has that I didn't and he doesn't seem to understand. So I get frustrated and irritated and snap at him. I'm sure he doesn't understand and I feel bad when I am thinking about it logically, but then I turn around and I'm hot too, and irritated and he says something about air conditioning and I'm like..yeah, we could, if you want to ditch the cable, we can save that money and buy air conditioners.
And then he says no, and we re-cycle.
We're good like that.
In other Derek news, he's having a lot of fun playing with friends around the neighborhood and I'm signing him up for swimming lessons tomorrow. He's pretty excited about swimming almost-daily for two weeks.
With this heat, I would be too. It's too bad the classes aren't at 4 when it's really hot.
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