Friday, April 10, 2020
My older daughter, Megan, came into my room this morning to do my morning care wearing a face mask. Wearing a face mask inside my house is unusual, so I asked Megan if she was sick. Megan said she was sick; she thinks it is simply a head cold and wants to make sure not to give it to me. I appreciate Megan’s concern for my health. When Megan left to go back to her home this morning, she said she was going to take a nap to try to rest out her cold. I hope Megan kicks this cold’s bootie quickly.
Do you remember phone books? We used to have very fat yellow page books distributed every year in Colorado Springs. The yellow page books were approximately three inches thick and the perfect size to use to raise my computer heater up a little from the tabletop. Each year I would replace my yellow page book with the current edition, so I could raise my heater and have easy access to the yellow pages if I needed a service. Last night, when I was already in bed, my seven-year-old, Mika, brought me a yellow page book and asked me what it was. I explained to Mika that before almost everyone had a computer and smart phone, we looked in books to find phone numbers instead of using Google.
I have my last yellow page book still placed below my heater. The spine of my yellow page book states to use until January 2009. The back cover was ripped off my yellow page book several years ago and the front cover is not in good shape. A few years ago, I had the good sense to have my helper seal the book with clear packing tape, so my heaters would quit ripping pages when I moved them around on the book. It is simple items we forget our children will never recognize. In Mika’s defense, she has never seen me use my yellow page book for any task other than being a heater stand.
I am frequently surprised when I hear Megan sing songs I grew up with. I will ask Megan how she learned a song, and she will tell me it is because she has a life. Ouch! Megan’s world does not revolve around me. I like my old stuff in my house. I still have a fat, heavy television because it has a built-in video cassette recorder. I kept several children’s movies when I cleared out most of our VHS tapes to use with that old television. Mika will recognize a VHS tape if not an audio cassette tape.
I am fighting with Mika about schoolwork today. It is 12:30 p.m. and I have managed to convince her to do a math worksheet. I have trouble getting Mika to do any schoolwork unless someone else is here to shut off the upstairs television, take away her toys, and drag her to her homework. I am the only one here right now. I t should not be this hard. I do not like being the ‘bad” guy, but it seems as if I do not threaten to call Mika’s dad or take away her toys when someone else gets there, she will not respond to me.
Today Mika asked me if she could do her online schoolwork before doing her reading and other offline work. I, of course, said no. Megan has been very good about logging the family computer off if she uses it in the morning and checking to make sure Mika logged it off when she leaves at night. The computer is Mika’s ultimate distraction, so I keep it logged out until absolutely necessary. If Mika did not have online schoolwork scheduled, I would simply use the computer as my bargaining chip.
Okay, the computer is now my bargaining chip. Mika just worked my last nerve and I told her that starting Monday, if her schoolwork is not done by noon each day I will log the family computer off once she finishes her online work and she will not be able to access it for the rest of the day. I made my baby cry.
My piece of advice to you is to make your baby cry. I have begged, pleaded, and cajoled for three weeks. I am not willing to do it for six more weeks. When Mika tells me she is living the worst life and wishes she was not alive, I need to fight back the tears and quit worrying my seven-year-old will die by suicide.
Until next time,
Susanne
Please check out my GoFundMe page.
My older daughter, Megan, came into my room this morning to do my morning care wearing a face mask. Wearing a face mask inside my house is unusual, so I asked Megan if she was sick. Megan said she was sick; she thinks it is simply a head cold and wants to make sure not to give it to me. I appreciate Megan’s concern for my health. When Megan left to go back to her home this morning, she said she was going to take a nap to try to rest out her cold. I hope Megan kicks this cold’s bootie quickly.
Do you remember phone books? We used to have very fat yellow page books distributed every year in Colorado Springs. The yellow page books were approximately three inches thick and the perfect size to use to raise my computer heater up a little from the tabletop. Each year I would replace my yellow page book with the current edition, so I could raise my heater and have easy access to the yellow pages if I needed a service. Last night, when I was already in bed, my seven-year-old, Mika, brought me a yellow page book and asked me what it was. I explained to Mika that before almost everyone had a computer and smart phone, we looked in books to find phone numbers instead of using Google.
I have my last yellow page book still placed below my heater. The spine of my yellow page book states to use until January 2009. The back cover was ripped off my yellow page book several years ago and the front cover is not in good shape. A few years ago, I had the good sense to have my helper seal the book with clear packing tape, so my heaters would quit ripping pages when I moved them around on the book. It is simple items we forget our children will never recognize. In Mika’s defense, she has never seen me use my yellow page book for any task other than being a heater stand.
I am frequently surprised when I hear Megan sing songs I grew up with. I will ask Megan how she learned a song, and she will tell me it is because she has a life. Ouch! Megan’s world does not revolve around me. I like my old stuff in my house. I still have a fat, heavy television because it has a built-in video cassette recorder. I kept several children’s movies when I cleared out most of our VHS tapes to use with that old television. Mika will recognize a VHS tape if not an audio cassette tape.
I am fighting with Mika about schoolwork today. It is 12:30 p.m. and I have managed to convince her to do a math worksheet. I have trouble getting Mika to do any schoolwork unless someone else is here to shut off the upstairs television, take away her toys, and drag her to her homework. I am the only one here right now. I t should not be this hard. I do not like being the ‘bad” guy, but it seems as if I do not threaten to call Mika’s dad or take away her toys when someone else gets there, she will not respond to me.
Today Mika asked me if she could do her online schoolwork before doing her reading and other offline work. I, of course, said no. Megan has been very good about logging the family computer off if she uses it in the morning and checking to make sure Mika logged it off when she leaves at night. The computer is Mika’s ultimate distraction, so I keep it logged out until absolutely necessary. If Mika did not have online schoolwork scheduled, I would simply use the computer as my bargaining chip.
Okay, the computer is now my bargaining chip. Mika just worked my last nerve and I told her that starting Monday, if her schoolwork is not done by noon each day I will log the family computer off once she finishes her online work and she will not be able to access it for the rest of the day. I made my baby cry.
My piece of advice to you is to make your baby cry. I have begged, pleaded, and cajoled for three weeks. I am not willing to do it for six more weeks. When Mika tells me she is living the worst life and wishes she was not alive, I need to fight back the tears and quit worrying my seven-year-old will die by suicide.
Until next time,
Susanne
Please check out my GoFundMe page.