Flashback - Just to Refresh Your Memory

You Can't Kill 'Em II

Once upon a time, there were a BIL and a SIL (sister-in-law, not to be confused with son-in-law)who had two boy monsters creatures flying monkeys children that were the most horrid evil wild precious children on the face of the planet. Just ask them. They'll tell you. There were days that went from sunup to sundown when voices wouldn't be raised in anger or jealousy or meanness or spite. (Sorry, I just swallowed my tongue. Happens every time I lie.)BIL is the best flake fake looser leech dad in the world. SIL is the best harp whiner screamer bitch gossip mom in the world. With parents like this, how could THE BOYS lose? (Yes, this must always be said with capital letters.)

When they were smaller versions of rat bastards themselves, they would get into something they shouldn't and SIL would scream, "Jim*...! "He'd ignore her. "Jimmy!"...."Jimmy Bob stop that!".... "James Robert, I said to stop that!"... You get the picture. This happened once when we were standing out by our cornfield and Little Jimmy* was digging up corn plants with his shoe. This is our income, our livelihood. This is not a good thing.She'd yell, then go on with her conversation and ignore him until she decided to yell again at which time he'd ignore her again, until finally BIL would be called into play... "BIL, Go DO SOMETHING with your son!"... He'd look at her, look at the kid, and take another swig of his beer/pop/whatever. Realizing everyone was looking at him to DO SOMETHING, he'd take the kid to another room of the house or around the corner of the shed, where he was told he'd been naughty and to not do it again. For at least another 5 minutes, okay?

I've got four kids. I'm not into abuse, honest I'm not... but a swat on the butt isn't beyond my realm of possibility when a kid is just plain ignoring you. I'm talking when they are at that young, impressionable stage in life when a swat can do some good. After they reach a certain age, then you can take away the internet cableTV car keys food.Yeah, you can argue with me that they'll end up all damaged and hating life, but believe me these people did these kids no favors.I'm also totally against punishing or berating a child in front of their parents. I hate it when others did it to my kids (most notibly BIL and SIL before they had children. With the look that says, MY kids won't do that when I have kids!) and I feel if the parents are there it is their responsibility to handle it. Unless we're talking doing something that would cause them death, like running in the street or catching their hair on fire. Then I'll step in. Only then. Even if I have to bite my tongue until it bleeds.

Point in fact: A few years have gone by and now they are pre-teens. (Actually, now they are teens, but this happened a couple of years ago). Still, basically getting away with anything and everything. MIL has a huge house that she offered to let our youngest daughter live in with her for a couple of semesters while going to college. It was nice for her since she was newly widowed, and it was nice for our daughter - living with family. Daughter has to be gone for a month with a school project out-of-state. MIL asks one of THE BOYS (the oldest) to stay overnight for a night or two. Nothing you'd think twice about, right?Daughter came home. Starting finding things 'not-quite-right' with her things. Let's see... nail polish remover in her toothpaste? Bottles of expensive skin care products dumped out. Perfume dumped out. Underwear rifled. A couple of blank checks missing from her checkbook. Do you get the idea?First she tells us. We're flabbergasted. (That's an Iowa word for those of you who don't know - it means gobsmacked). We can't imagine what happened. Then we found out Freddy* spent the night downstairs among daughter's things. Hubby mentioned it to MIL. MIL couldn't imagine it could be him! If not him, we asked, then WHO? Who has been at your house? Nobody. It's locked. She lives there alone. No one has been over except Freddy*. Uh huh.

Now, Hubby asks if she is going to have the talk with BIL... 'cause he knows if HE brings it up there will be feudin' like you've only seen in the south. (Apologies to you people from the south.)Okay, she'll talk to him.We heard BIL got a talkin' to. Oh, yes. We heard THE BOY got a talkin' to - sort of. We heard he admitted to some of it. WTF? SOME? How could he just do some of it and yet all the other was done, too? Yeah, we be stupid.That was the end of it. No apologies to daughter. No offers to replace and/or pay her back for all the expensive items ruined. Nothing....and they wonder why we don't have them over for 'family events'.

*Names have been changed to protect the innocents little shits.