Animal Antics & Somnambulance: I Know I Am, But What Are You?


I'd have killed to live in this place!

At some point, all 4 Spawn have told me "Mamma, my friends say you're like a teenager". The tone with which this is said is apparently dependent on the time of day, or current conversation, or planetary alignment...who knows? Sometimes it sounds like an insult, sometimes a compliment. Maybe I do. Actually, I'm pretty sure I do. I love all things nerdy, alternative rock, Matchbox Twenty (OMGOMGOMGOMGOMG I LOOOOVE), and just about anything punk. Don't ask me why. I just do. I think Emily the Strange is just stripy sock rockin' awesomeness. I'm madly in love with Firefly. I'm not sure if those things make me like a teenager. I think they make me more like a nerd. But that's OK. Nerds are hot! Nerds KNOW STUFF!


Dealt with this more than once.

I think this is what makes them say that. I relate, somehow, on some weird level that puts me half in the plane of reality and half in some parallel, overly hormonal, dramatic dimension where teenagers rule the world and life could end at any minute because "my bff likes the same boy I do". Quite a few of my kiddos friends have added me on Facebook, and they do talk to me on a regular basis. Unlike with some parents, it's no holds barred in a conversation with me. For some reason they feel free to be themselves. This doesn't bother me in the least. I think, maybe they sense that I don't see them as wee tots who need 24 hour supervision to keep them from drinking the Drain o. They are people, with budding emotions, dealing with issues that, to them, are set at def-con 5 with no hope of lowering the crisis level in sight. My kids friends, boyfriends and even ex boyfriends come to me for advice. Not just about my kids, either, as you would expect a boyfriend or ex to do. They come to me for advice on anything and everything. We've covered topics ranging from what college courses they should take, how to handle the new love, parent issues, self esteem and peer pressure to the death of a friend or loved one. Yes, even pregnancy scares. And, again, yes the young mothers come to me for advice too. They also come to me just to vent. Or just to visit. This is all perfectly okie doky with me.

It makes me feel good. It makes me feel needed. More to the point, it makes me feel respected. You don't generally ask someone for advice unless you respect their opinion. Right? Who doesn't appreciate a little R.E.S.P.E.C.T.? So, yes, I'm fine with it. And I'm fine with them being themselves around me. How else are we going to get to the root of the problem if they don't feel comfortable enough to tell all the dirty details? I talk to them on their level. It's not hard. It's our level, only, more fun!