throwing rocks at boys
Well, that's what they were doing. What possesses a group of 12 year old boys to think that throwing rocks at each other is a good, fun thing to do?
That's the garage window they broke. They FREAKED out. So I told them that they would all have to come over on Saturday and work for the money needed to replace the windows - and they'd have to bring their parents with them to see what they did. I told them to be prepared to mow the lawn, rake the leaves, clean out the gutters and trim the hedges.
Did I mention the window is plastic and will cost about ten dollars to replace?
I just figured that making them sweat it out and nearly piss their pants at the thought of what their parents would do to them was good enough punishment.
Am I evil? Yes, I am.
Comments
What possesses a group of 12 year old boys to think that throwing rocks at each other is a good, fun thing to do?
The same thing that possesses a bunch of 30-something boys to shoot roman candles at one another? Not that I'd know anything about that, mind you.
Come to think of it, there might have been some 50-something boys involved, too...
Posted by: Uncle Squid | October 19, 2005 05:46 PM
Not evil.
They'll remember this lesson. Well done, michele.
Posted by: Trish | October 19, 2005 05:58 PM
feverishly takes notes for this whole mom-of-boys thing
Posted by: robyn | October 19, 2005 05:59 PM
They must have been heaving the rocks pretty fast to crack plastic like that.
I would make them wear helmets in the yard from now on.With a warning that the short bus is next.
Posted by: mbruce | October 19, 2005 06:09 PM
Oh, I am so going to pester you for parenting advice when/if my wife and I have kids.
Posted by: Steve G. | October 19, 2005 06:13 PM
not evil at all. hell, i used to do that shit. what stopped me? parents like you.
"The same thing that possesses a bunch of 30-something boys to shoot roman candles at one another?"
obviously, they never got caught throwing rocks at each other when they were kids.
Posted by: mikey | October 19, 2005 06:18 PM
What else are you going to do with rocks?
If God didn't intend for us to throw rocks then he would have made them bigger.
Posted by: Rob M | October 19, 2005 06:33 PM
Reminds me of the ground rules in whiffle ball at a neighbor's home, back in the day. Hit it over the house, it's a home run. Hit it through the window, it's a run home.
Posted by: Dr_Mike | October 19, 2005 06:56 PM
Ha! You'd better be careful, or your excellent child managment skills will land you in jail for, for, what's it called? Ah, PARENTING!
Well done!
Posted by: htom | October 19, 2005 07:22 PM
I bow to your parenting prowess. WE'RE NOT WORTHY! WE'RE NOT WORTHY!
Posted by: Analog Mouse | October 19, 2005 08:35 PM
There are still kids around who care what their parents think?
Damn.
Posted by: Toren | October 19, 2005 09:26 PM
Then there are the parents who will just try to pay for the window outright so their kids won't have to suffer (or learn to face the consequences of their actions).
Posted by: mellomelsko | October 19, 2005 09:51 PM
Evil? Nah, more like fucking genius!
haaa.
Posted by: Y | October 19, 2005 11:11 PM
Work the living heck out of them...then get a polycarbonate replacement rather than the plexi. They can throw bricks at the polycarb and it won't break.
Posted by: Purple Avenger | October 20, 2005 01:23 AM
You are a f***king genius, Michelle.
I can't wait for "mellomelsko"'s prediction to come true, just so you can deliver a nice smackdown.
Posted by: Zarba | October 20, 2005 09:05 AM
I like your style!
Excellent punishment. Lets just hope the other parents aren't weak spined about the matter.
Posted by: David Earney | October 20, 2005 09:55 AM
Actually, it's pretty damned brilliant.
That's the kind of punishment my folks used to dole out, and neither my brother nor I have:
a. been arrested
b. been hospitalized for massive head trauma
c. killed a person
d. gotten pregnant/got a girl pregnant out-of-wedlock
e. had to leave town, quietly, in the middle of the night, and not leave a forwarding address.
making people understand that actions have consequences - even if it's just a $10 piece of plastic - is part of being a parent.
I applaud you and wish that more of my students' parents had taken that tack.
I just hope you don't catch hell from the other parents who try to pull either the "boys will be boys" or "but my little angel would never do anything wrong. he was just standing there holding the other boy's coats while they threw rocks" bit.
Posted by: ricki | October 20, 2005 10:30 AM
Oh, no...their parents would kick their asses all over town if they knew. I'm not even going to tell them. This was their get out of jail (almost) free (with a little fear) card.
Posted by: michele | October 20, 2005 10:35 AM
"What possesses a group of 12 year old boys to think that throwing rocks at each other is a good, fun thing to do?"
You've got to be kidding.
Posted by: earl | October 20, 2005 01:19 PM
Rocks? That's nothin'. We used to have BB gun fights when I was a kid. But we were safe. We had rules. We only used those classic Daisy single pump lever action rifles. Teams had to stay on opposite sides of the cul-de-sac, to give the BB's time to slow down enough so they wouldn't break skin. Perfectly safe.
Yes, yes, I know. It's a miracle I ever made it to adulthood.
Posted by: Garrett | October 20, 2005 06:30 PM
What possesses a group of 12 year old boys to think that throwing rocks at each other is a good, fun thing to do?
Uhhhh, I dunno. I'm awfully sorry Mrs Catalano. It won't happen again. I promise.
Can I have my rocks back now?
Posted by: Veeshir | October 21, 2005 10:09 AM