17) The Tale of Playing Scrabble with my Mom

#QuarantineBlues This is the tale of playing Scrabble with my mom... who is like a walking dictionary... putting words that I need to consult the dictionary on my phone secretly to know their meaning...

Secretly because I don't want my mom to laugh at me... or give me the “did I really birth this child” look... because I didn't know the word... as I'm the person, who not only can't spell apocalypse, I can't pronounce it either... Also my go-to-word on Scrabble is usually 3-letter long... I like to take the road more simple... 

Anyway, good news, I won against my mom, the Scrabble Yoda...

How did I win? Read on my rambling tale to find out, where I go off-topic a lot... about cats and dilatory... and why I don't have kids... which may make people want to throw scrabble tiles at me... 

I'm sorry... Please don't triple word score me... I really am trying my best with this writing thing...  

So the other day, I played Scrabble with my mom because it's her favorite game... She's the Obi-Wan Kenobi of Scrabble... Yeah I don't know what this means, I was just trying to sound cool...

Anyway, I was doing the whole trying to be a good daughter thing... which I'm not really good at... but I was trying to learn a new skill... 

Tried Googling “How to be a good daughter” but Google wasn't really helpful... There was some mention of dragons... dancing on trains... battling minotaurs and stuff...  

So I stopped reading but thought to myself... playing the game she loves would probably count... so Scrabble, it is... 

Also I was bored... and was too lazy to read or watch TV... 

 

So I guess I'm not winning any daughter points?

Oh well... Never expected to... 

I'm very accepting of my lack of daughter skills... 

 

Anyways.... This the tale of our scrabble game...

The scrabble board is out... My mom goes first...

She makes one long word that uses almost all her tiles...

I put, “dog”...

She looks at me... I look at her... She looks at me again...

I'm like... what??? I like dogs... 

I mean not in the I want to keep them as pets kind of way... cause taking care of myself is already a losing battle... 

Also I don't like anything furry... I can't stand the feeling of fur touching me... actually I don't like anything touching me.... which is a sordid tale for another day...

A dog or cat brushes by me... I wince... scream... cry... shower for 7 days...

Do the whole shoulder thing... with my body all curled up... 

End up offending the cat or dog owner... 

It's not like I don't like cats... 

I like cute kittens with their adorable faces... Cute smile... 

But then they turn into cats...

Yeah I'm a horrible person... 

You could say a cad... 

 

Shut up? 

Ok...

 

I'm sorry pet owners... I don't want to hurt you... I know your pets are like your babies... but I don't like anything touching me... 

So can you please get your pets to stay far away from me... like perhaps in another room... And don't just let them roam around and come rub themselves against your guests... 

Rubbing yourself against complete strangers is considered rude.. Didn't you teach your pets that? 

Like see what you do to babies; put them in a cage so they don't roam about the house... 

Yeah... I know they are not called cages... but to a kid they may seem like cages...

So anyway cots.... cribs... pram... Yes... These were all my scrabble words... Can't you tell... 😅

Wait.. People actually let their kids crawl around the house... 

Hmmm Who knew... I thought they were always  caged... cribbed up... I should visit more friends...  

See what happens when you give kids too much freedom of movement... 

Luckily I'm not a mom.... 

Not because of the difficulties that come from caring for a kid.... but because of the whole “what if I get a kid just like me”... 

I'm already feeling sorry for myself just thinking about it...

Man, taking care of children is hard.... They say it's not rocket science... 

But have you done rocket science? No? Me too. So how are we going to compare it to rocket science.. 

Like I didn't know toddlers are not supposed to eat cake until they turn one because of the sugar... Like who knew??? I could have unknowingly poisoned my child, poor Christen and Kristen...

Or drugged them... Like my colleague actually did the other day... by accidentally giving her toddler her own cough syrup instead of the kid's... The kid slept for hours..

I really hope babies come with a baby manual... cause I don't want to harm the kid... 

A reset button would be nice too in case I unknowingly make a mistake... and the ability to remove their batteries when they cry too loudly...

Although I'm just glad babies come fully fixed and we don't have to DIY them....

Because all this baby stuff is enough to make anyone live in a constant state of worry... 

Don't feed them this or that... This cry means they're hungry... That one means gas... This cry means they are just cranky... 

How do they know?!

Then there are parents whose antenna lights up when their children get into trouble... do something they are not supposed to... or when their kid is lying... 

How do parents know this stuff... Is there like a Guardian Angel network where the Guardian Angel reports to the parents when their children mess up... 

Paging parents of Crystal Bethany... This is Alpha One calling Bravo Two. Do you read me? Here is an update on the status of your first born... 

She lied to her friends... Said the dress was nice when it wasn't... Also she ate a pizza... And yes she enjoyed the pizza... 

 

This is the loving gaze I give my slice of pizza.... 

If I'm gonna kill my diet.. I would rather do it with pizza..

 

She just finished work... She should be home soon... Over... 

Like is this how it works? 

Although my Guardian Angel probably wouldn't have much to complain about me... cause I'm like good... 

Don't wait-what me, Tyler.. 

I'm serious... I'm like the Fraulein of the Maria kind... The only sin I commit is eating sinful food... and maybe losing my temper... 

And I may have the sin of pride... of hubris (P.S. Angels would probably use this word cause they're, you know.. angelic)... 

16) RIP Sidney Poitier

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Thanks to my mom who introduced us kids to the timeless, classic films and music of the 50s, 60s and 70s.... I have fond memories of watching To Sir With Love and being in awe of this man who commanded the scene with his presence.

Watching the way he played the role of a teacher able to change his students from rowdy teenagers, to capable young adults... it made me think of my mom, a teacher who could take any class that other teachers didn't want... and turn them into students who were attentive, passed their exams, and still come looking for her, 20, 30, 4o years after she had taught them. 

The type of teacher, who can get even the most unenthusiastic student interested in studying... 

 

A neighbor, who was worried that her daughter was not concentrating in her studies, asked if my mom could help her a little by some tutoring... 

My mom said yes and now the young girl, excitedly comes every few days a week to study with my mom... Making her mom and my mom so happy to see her so keen to learn...  

It takes passion, and love and respect for the students you have pledged to teach, to be a successful teacher that will always be remembered... 

The sincerity from my mom... The passionate way she teaches and the love for her students... Her avid love for knowledge that bounces off her and gets her students interested in their studies too... 

I know that the reason I got through my schooling days and did well, was because of her guidance when young... 

Which Sidney Poitier showed in To Sir with Love... I remember there was a scene in the movie, when he taught his students how to make a salad to get them to eat healthy...

And it resonated with me because I remember when I was young... seeing my mom take loaves of bread, eggs and all kinds of food to school...