dramaturgy | (no subject)

I'm not feeling well today. And I'm hungryish but a) I can't get up from the couch to find anything and b) if I eat a big something I'll ruin dinner. If there is dinner. It's usually a 50-50 shot during the week in this house.

I'm almost finshed with the first season of Supernatural, and I love it. I love all of the Winchester boys together, all three of them. I kind of know what happens because I've been very casual about avoiding spoilers. I figured I'd see the show eventually, but I didn't know when. So yes, I love the three Winchesters, and how even though they haven't had too much screen time together, the relationship between the three of them is crystal clear -- I mean, details and all are somewhat more fuzzy. They are good at keeping things underwraps until they want to reveal something, but those last ten or fifteen minutes of "Shadow" was... wow. When John is around, Dean and Sam stand up a little straighter, their automatic response is a snappy, "Yes sir," and like I said, I'm sure there's a lot more development that I haven't seen yet, but the fact that they did so much with so little impresses me. Also, I like looking at Jensen Ackles and Jared Padalecki, but I am a red-blooded heterosexual female.

Currently I'm breaking from watching Supernatural to watch Dr. Phil, and they are talking about ~*teen trends. Currently it's text messaging. This one girl sent 14,000ish text messages in a month and the parents are at a loss. HERE'S A CLUE, SHE'S THIRTEEN AND YOU'RE HER PARENTS. TAKE THE CELL PHONE AWAY. God, even I can tell you that. Honestly, I think if parents took a little responsibility for the things their kids had access to, half of the problems we have would solve themselves. Like take these questions from the mom of a teenaged boy who texted 120,000 times in three months.

"Is texting the teenage form of alcoholism?"
No. Alcoholism is the teenage form of alcoholism.

"Is this an obsessive-compulsive behavior that I should worry about?"
Seriously?

And now here's this one twelve-year-old girl who's sending nearly naked photos of herself and sending them to her boyfriend and inappropriate text messages, etc. They're worried! Of course they are.

TAKE. THE. CELL. PHONE. AWAY. Does she keep finding the phone and take it back? DESTROY IT. TERMINATE YOUR CONTRACT WITH THE COMPANY. WHATEVER IT TAKES.

Maybe this is just me speaking, but if that were me in my teenaged years -- hell, if that were me NOW -- my phone would be gone before I could even start explaining myself, and I would probably also lose other privileges. I mean, really.

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This is why I love any/all parents who disipline properly. I saw one mom (at work) look at her little girl (maybe 5-7 Early elementary) and say "You go over there and find your self control. When you do, come back here and we can talk about it." I think my jaw hit the floor. It was awesome.

Ohh yeah. I get happy whenever a parent disciplines their child properly. I was working last Saturday at the Movie Gallery and there was this fiveish year old who was just pitching a fit because he wasn't going to get candy or whatever. So his father picked him up, tucked him under his arm, and they left without getting any movies. I could have cried.

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I wish I could say that I have a theory, but. I don't.

Urgh. On NPR just before Christmas there was some sort of advice columnist lady who advised people to have their daughters assembly-line manufacture potholders out of those horrible little elastic things, and give (Not Very) Thoughtful Handmade Potholders to absolutely everyone on the family's gift list. This to save money. Then, in the same show, she answered the question, "How young is too young to get an iPhone for Christmas?" with, I believe, "Ten." Tell me what eleven-year-old needs an iPhone. Hell, if I'd gotten an iPhone for Christmas I'd have somehow managed to lose it, even if I were 16 and loved it to bits. (Especially if I were 16 and loved it to bits.)

But maybe I'm just bitter, because my parents actually raised me, rather than buying me things and letting me do whatever I wanted, and then acting all surprised when I turned out to be a little shit.

And also, if you are willing to waste a hideously expensive hunk of electronics that comes with all kinds of other charges, on a kid who's on the younger side of junior high, why is everyone else on your gift list getting potholders that fall apart at the slightest breeze and don't actually work to hold pots?

I used to make those! But I was a crafty sort of person so they worked pretty well.

If I'd gotten an iPhone, I'd probably be scared to even take it out of the box. Hell, my new iPod sat on my dresser for a week before I actually took it out and started fiddling with it.

I suppose the natural conclusion of this tirade is KIDS TODAY. (!!1!)

I think it's more ADULTS TODAY. Apparently some of them think there's some kind of speshul sekrit way to solve KIDS TODAY problems, either because their children are ~*unique*~ or because TECHNOLOGY IS SO INCOMPREHENSIBLE. I think I was just as selfish and naive as the Kids Today, I just had parents who didn't put up with it as often. Sure, I don't agree with everything they did, but there's nothing wrong with me.

...wait, crap, I'm as neurotic and asocial as they come. Also, I swear and press the snooze button a lot, and get self-righteous about things I don't understand. And I have this pimple on my chin. NEVER MIND ALL THAT.

My friend Greg and I were watching Dr. Phil a little today too and caught that. WHY DOES A 12 YEAR OLD NEED A CELL PHONE, I ASK? I didn't get mine until 16 because my parents wanted me to have it when I started driving.

Parents are stupid sometimes. Also? The ones who think it's okay to let people hit their son in the face so he can be a fighter? Wow.

Yeah, I got mine as a junior in high school because I was starting to drive, and my brother and sister didn't get theirs until 17 and 19. :\

Personally, about the fight training, I say that if you are stupid enough to let people hit you repeatedly in the head without protection and proper professional supervision, go ahead and take yourself out of the gene pool. We don't need more stupid people around.