Pookie hits the jackpot
There are certain events in a child's life that must, for them later, really stand out. I think Pookie had one over the last weekend.
It began at a hockey game. Actually is was a small, 3-on-3 tournament in which her three uncles were playing. It was just after 10, and there were not many others in the arena. Dam'ma gave both Pookie and Boy (her year younger cousin) some money for a cookie. It was one of the very first times they were allowed to venture that far alone. Lovely Wife kept track of time.
"I think they have been gone too long," she says after a few minutes.
"They're fine," says Dam'ma.
I get a look, which is code for "go see." I go see.
The arena is set up with a large, atrium-like hallway connecting both the ice arena and the basketball courts. Concessions take up a part of this area. There are also some video games, an air-hockey table and the like. The kids are actively playing air hockey: their heads just above table level.
"What are you two doing?"
"Playing air hockey." Ask a dumb question...
"Your mom is worried about you."
"Why? We are right here," says Pookie playing with one hand and holding her shirt with the other. It is then that I notice that she has something wrapped up in the bottom of her shirt.
"Did you get your cookies?"
"They were closed," says the Boy. "So we put the dollar in the machine for quarters--which explained the air hockey. "And we got some tattoos."
There are some phrases that always seem to get a parent's instant and undivided attention, even when the kids are 5 & 6. "And we got some tattoos" is one of them.
"Oh really?" Was all I could muster.
And then it came out.
I must attempt to describe the tone. Whenever Pookie gets excited, her voice gets higher and her speech gets faster. She had both going at full speed.
"We put the dollar in and it kept giving us MONEY!" she says with great emphasis on "money." "And so we got a tattoo out of the machine and LOOK," she says holding up her shirt. It was full of quarters.
I have never seen two kids so happy. They had hit the jackpot in the change-machine slots.
Turns out Dam'ma gave them a $10. The look on their faces when the quarters kept falling must have been priceless.
It began at a hockey game. Actually is was a small, 3-on-3 tournament in which her three uncles were playing. It was just after 10, and there were not many others in the arena. Dam'ma gave both Pookie and Boy (her year younger cousin) some money for a cookie. It was one of the very first times they were allowed to venture that far alone. Lovely Wife kept track of time.
"I think they have been gone too long," she says after a few minutes.
"They're fine," says Dam'ma.
I get a look, which is code for "go see." I go see.
The arena is set up with a large, atrium-like hallway connecting both the ice arena and the basketball courts. Concessions take up a part of this area. There are also some video games, an air-hockey table and the like. The kids are actively playing air hockey: their heads just above table level.
"What are you two doing?"
"Playing air hockey." Ask a dumb question...
"Your mom is worried about you."
"Why? We are right here," says Pookie playing with one hand and holding her shirt with the other. It is then that I notice that she has something wrapped up in the bottom of her shirt.
"Did you get your cookies?"
"They were closed," says the Boy. "So we put the dollar in the machine for quarters--which explained the air hockey. "And we got some tattoos."
There are some phrases that always seem to get a parent's instant and undivided attention, even when the kids are 5 & 6. "And we got some tattoos" is one of them.
"Oh really?" Was all I could muster.
And then it came out.
I must attempt to describe the tone. Whenever Pookie gets excited, her voice gets higher and her speech gets faster. She had both going at full speed.
"We put the dollar in and it kept giving us MONEY!" she says with great emphasis on "money." "And so we got a tattoo out of the machine and LOOK," she says holding up her shirt. It was full of quarters.
I have never seen two kids so happy. They had hit the jackpot in the change-machine slots.
Turns out Dam'ma gave them a $10. The look on their faces when the quarters kept falling must have been priceless.
Listen
posted by Piss Poor Prof at 6:47 PM
3 Comments:
Vending machines accept $10 bills? I really need to get out more...
I am laughing so hard... Hilarious. And, yes, "we got some tatoos" makes a parent's ears go instantly rigid.
Just found your blog. Thought provoking. Keep writing.
A fellow adjunct.
Yes, she has found the wet and stick tattoos. She alternates from skulls and ponies.
She has a wide interest.
Let's hope this fades a little before her late teen years.
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