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6/27/11

Punk Kids


. To me the idea of eating in the office break-room is the same as saying, "I'd like to have an hour that feels, looks, and sounds like work, but not get paid for it." Instead I drive my car to church parking lot on cloudy days and the park when it's sunny. The park is farther away, but the shade trees are worth it.

I have always assumed that this is a little bit odd to the kids at the park. I know when I was a Jr. Higher I would have been a little weirded out that people just came and sat in their cars facing the park. Are they kidnappers? Are they selling drugs? Why do those people just sit there in their cars and then randomly leave?
 We would have whispered and made up stories and freaked ourselves out.

These kids appointed a spokesperson to come knock on my window and ask me. He was very polite and maybe a little disappointed that something as prosaic as shade has us congregating. Adults really are boring.

I was mostly amused, though I put on my best "I am adult whose time you're wasting for no good reason" face, but I was also a bit shocked. I would have never confronted a strange adult. Not even if I had my friends five feet away.  Not even if the adult looked harmless (I probably look harmless).

What do you think? What would you have done as a kid?

15 comments:

  1. as a kid I always stayed away from strangers on the low radar I think I still do! but things change nowadays kids are different...

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  2. Totally I would have stayed away! Visions of someone snatching me up were seared into my brain by my parents.

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  3. Exactly! Even if it was a small woman I just wouldn't have risked going up to a strangers car. Not just someone sitting on a park bench (Which I also would not have done) but someone in a running car. Crazy!

    And cheeky buggers all yelled good-bye to me when I pulled out....

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  4. Wow...that's awefully brave (and a little unintelligent) of the little boy! What if you were a kidnapper!
    But it makes for a good story...LOL! Kids do the darndest things :)

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  5. Wow! I would have never done that either. I would have stared at the stranger for a while, but never approach them!

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  6. interesting kid. hope he stays safe.

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  7. that's funny! yeah, i definitely would never have asked a strange adult what they were doing.

    also, thanks for your sweet comment on my blog!

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  8. To me the idea of eating in the office break-room is the same as saying, "I'd like to have an hour that feels, looks, and sounds like work, but not get paid for it."

    This made me laugh because I feel the same way. Unfortunately, I don't have enough time to go to the park on lunch.

    As for the kids, if I had my buddies around me, I can picture myself asking someone what they were doing. It is a little like the spider in the room to me. I would rather kill it and know it was dead than leave it alone and wonder where it was. (did that make any sense?)

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  9. FabricFascination, Bummer about your lunch break! It took me a while to find a park close-by to go to.

    Congrats on being the first person to think they were the same kind of kid when they were young!

    I'm glad to know these kids aren't just completely abnormal!

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  10. I think that is awesome a kid was brave enough to confront an adult. It definitely makes me feel comfortable that they have tough skin. Personally..I would have not approached anyone at that age.

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  11. I don't think I would have approached strangers either...boy, kids are getting bolder these days:)

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  12. Hi Melody (nice name)
    Loved all ur illos...they are really sweet & cute. As a child I used to approach anyone who was well dressed(I had the impression "well dressed people are well mannered & ought to be good") When I was a teenager that changed & I became hesitant. I was scared of many a things then. Now things have changed again...we tend to change as we grow, rite?
    Cheers from Dubai
    Deepa
    http://www.deepazworld.blogspot.com/

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  13. first off, I just found you from a comment you left on Christines blog and clicked because, well...because I noticed your NAME! :) I had to come over and follow you just because of that! LOL

    I also have parked facing the park on a lunch break before and I guess I never really thought it was weird. Now that you mention it though...hmm-I guess it would look weird to others?! :)

    have a lovely weekend!
    from a fellow, Melody!

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  14. Hi Melody-Mae! Great name :)

    I have no idea if it looks weird to other adults, but you know how kids are warned about strangers all the time and then they also think the world revolves around them so...I think they get a little creeped out sometimes :)

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  15. Maybe the fact that he was the appointed emissary, backed up by his witnessing peers, made him feel secure...

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