Conversation I had with my mother on Saturday has stuck with me in an upsetting way. She’d taken my son out for lunch and saw a mixed race teen couple a few tables over (white girl, black guy). Launches into a screed about it once back at my house on how animals know better than to mix races, but we don’t. Edit: forgot to add how the girl was just a little “white bitch”. Unreal.
This is hardly new, I’ve heard this garbage all my life and push back hard on it, but what got me this time is the snarky way she threw at me, “I enjoyed our conversation today, it was scintillating,” as she was leaving. Followed by a, “You’re never going to change me,” uttered in a less-than-pleasant way. She’s 81, grew up in SE Kentucky. Strangely enough, she hates Trump and voted for Obama both times.
I think the next time I see her alone I’m going to tell her that like politics with her younger sister, it’s a topic best left alone between the two of us. With a reminder that if she tries to poison my childrens’ minds, like she did her own three, my reaction will be very ugly. I’m open to helpful suggestions though.
Man, I don’t know. My grandparents on my mom’s side used the N word around me when little. I knew it was wrong, and I believe my parents talked to them and they cooled it. Sounds like your mother refuses to talk differently around your child.
I think I’d tell her you are not interested in changing her, but she needs to respect your wishes when it comes to your child. If she refuses to do that, you are in a tough spot.
Wow, that is terrible news and I can’t imagine having to retrace your travel steps from Orlando back to the Netherlands on such short turnaround. That had to be exhausting. My deepest sympathy to you, your wife and her family for your loss.
I hope you are able to reschedule your trip sometime in the coming months. It might be a nice way for your wife to transition from the grieving process to the healing process.
Wow. If it were me, and my mother expressed those views in front of my children, I’d pretty much do the same thing you did, express my displeasure and advise her not to talk about such things in the company of my kids. I’d probably also mention that she already had her chance to raise her kids her way, and that this was my kid to raise my way, and if she didn’t respect that (and thus didn’t respect me) then she would shortly find herself without a kid or a grandkid in her life.
Sometimes you have take the hard tact to get through to people, especially older ones who are set in their ways. Sometimes it doesn’t work though, and if that happens you have to be serious about following through with whatever consequences you laid out. Good luck.
Thanks for your kind words. It has indeed been rather exhausting, but having to arrange all sorts of stuff immediately after returning does have one good effect: it keeps our mind off things a bit, which is nice, especially for my wife.
We will reschedule this trip, absolutely, but it won’t be until next year: summer holiday is the only time the girls can stay away from school that long. But hopefully, we’ll be able to take a shorter trip somewhere else after all this is done. Some peace and quiet to help process all that has happened would indeed be great. Having said that, I’m amazed at how well both my wife and the girls are handling everything so far. Will keep a close eye on them in the coming weeks though, just to be sure
I am amped! I received an email from the International Monetary Fund (African Regional Department)! Evidently there is 25 Million buckaroos waiting for me at “Cooperative bank USA”.
Went to the local park the other day with my girlfriend’s son. We’re creating a new game based on Calvinball, so we spent a couple hours running about like mad.
This park is a little sketchy, but it’s huge and has a cool play structure and lots of trees, so the kids really love going there to play.
Oh, Jesus, I’ve heard of that. That’s a new street drug the kids are calling “twenty-two rimfire”. I guess they stick the flat part with a pin while snorting it. Apparently it feels like it blows the top of your head clear off.
You should turn that in to your nearest police station.
He might not be but I’d say that a single .22 round would be tossed into a garbage pail after you left the police station. It could be dangerous if a kid hit it with a rock, but what would be the point? If you find more, or just the empty brass from some that were fired, I’d report it.
While I was joking, it’s my non-joking understanding that the police are the best people to contact when random ammunition or explosives are found. It happens more often than you think; I’ve heard a number of stories where some old veteran passes away, and their heirs find a collection of grenades, rifles, etc. from back when they were fighting Over There, and came home with some cool souvenirs.
If you did want to get rid of the bullet, or just report that some Weird Activity was going on next to a children’s park, it couldn’t hurt to call.
That’s kind of what I thought. I imagined turning it in and them saying, “Thank you, sir.” And laughing at me as I left and tossing it.
I suppose that’s a good point. But since ammunition isn’t registered, I’m not sure I wouldn’t be just interrupting them. But I suppose there’s no harm in asking.
That said, this park is a sketchy place, I can see them saying, “Oh. Of course you found a bullet there. I’m surprised you didn’t find a gun.”
I’ll ask a retired police detective I know what he thinks.
save time: pull off bullet with pliers - discard, pour out powder on a piece of foil and ignite with lighter - ooh FWOOOSH!, then smash the rim base with a hammer - POP!, throw all in trash
So someone managed to swipe my debit card number and also get my pin, all with me still having possession of my debit card. They did two $500 ATM withdrawals before the bank shut it down. I’m contesting it and my bank will go after the banks at which the ATM withdrawals were made, but it makes me nervous about getting refunded. I’m out $1000.
So my question is should I file a police report? If yes, should I file with my local police station or with the police station covering the area where the withdrawals were made?
