Sadly, my peany brain couldn't grasp most of what we learned - other than it's COOL to go to Saturn. Those rings! Yes, please. Other than that, it's just a regular old Universe. Ho hum.
While standing in line to visit Robo Dome (home of the least-enthusiastic robot demonstration EVER), we had the distinct joy of being near The Family of My Ultimate Nightmare. Completely clueless parents. Completely frightning children. Two of the boys (around 11 years old, I'd say) got in a fight, which involved the father having to restrain one of the angry, snuffing youths by roping his arms behind his back.
For real.
The kid was just aching to smash the other. He would desperately blurt Mommy! like he was Timmy from South Park, imploring some help from the Universal source of Mothers. It would've been funny, (or maybe tragic...whatever) if I didn't feel I was in mortal peril of being caught in the crossfire. The mother, good woman that she was, responded to the near-hog-tied child by saying, Oppositional defiance is NOT going to work! Only YOU can change your behavior. I choose to not be part of this.
For real. I wrote it down. Because you can't make this shit up.
Now, not being a parent myself, I realize this is unqualified judgment on my part. But the parenting was so ASTRONOMICALLY ineffective, I had to marvel.
As Kevin and I left the campus, completely exhausted, over-stimulated, and boggled, we decided that the only thing that could rejuvenate our childless souls, was Robin's BBQ. (Perhaps the yummiest BBQ joint in all of San Gabriel Valley.) Here is Kevin's contemplative restaurant pose...you can almost see his thought bubble: What's better than extra-spicy barbecue sauce? Vasectomy: quite possibly the perfect solution.
Amazing. You two seem to be the only things in color moving through a black and white world. There's a metaphor or symbolism to be written about here...somewhere...by a writer better than me.
Posted by: Paul | on May 23, 2006 01:58 PM