Nala and Gaz

[JBun]

Imbrium wrote:

I really need to stop forgetting how stupid it is to go to walmart on the weekend. no offense to those of you who breed, but if I ruled the world there would be a strictly enforced leash law for children. not that *all* children would be better off (from my point of view) if leashed... but definitely about 90% of them. while it didn't apply to this trip, children would also be banned from stores between the hours of midnight and 4 am as they especially irk me in walmart when they're cranky in the middle of the night and parents shouldn't be hauling their poor kids around at that hour anyway.

if I ruled the world, it would be legal for me (and only me... plus anyone I personally deputized) to bring a cattle prod into walmart and use it on people who shop in small groups and get so wrapped up in talking about stupid stuff that none of them notice they're inconveniencing half a dozen people who would like to get around them (also if they're walking side-by-side very slowly and spread out across the whole aisle making it impossible for anyone wanting to walk normal speed to pass them).

while I'm plotting my dictatorship, I'd also place a moratorium on music in stores, build some sort of noise-reducing force-field around myself (because some people are prone to sensory overload and would prefer not to have a panic attack in the walmart, tyvm) and require any store the size of wal-mart to have at least 3-4 strategically placed water fountains instead of just the one in the very very front and the one hidden in layaway that I always forget about when I'm dying of thirst after being in there for two freaking hours.

I'll update on the pets later, I'm worn out from shopping and being awake a bit too long.

Just remember, we were all once, those annoying kids that other adults were complaining about at the time

It's nice to hear I'm not the only one who gets sensory overload from excessive noise. Sometimes I just can't wait to get out of that store, it can be sooo crazy there.

That little runt is too cute!!! I would just want to cuddle him all the time, but he's sooo little

 

[Imbrium]

JBun wrote:

Just remember, we were all once, those annoying kids that other adults were complaining about at the time

yes, but when *I* was a little kid, parents of obnoxious little kids put them on leashes. I kid you not. I remember when I was little, seeing the occasional child (usually a little boy) wearing a harness and leash and wondering how bad that kid was that their parents leashed them . no one does that any more, at least that I've seen. just seeing other kids put on leashes would be enough to scare many of the others into line, I think (certainly worked that way with me, lol). my parents also never took me anywhere in the middle of the night 'cause my bedtime was 7-9 pm (got later as I got older).

 

[holtzchick]

Imbrium wrote:

JBun wrote:

Just remember, we were all once, those annoying kids that other adults were complaining about at the time

yes, but when *I* was a little kid, parents of obnoxious little kids put them on leashes.  I kid you not.  I remember when I was little, seeing the occasional child (usually a little boy) wearing a harness and leash and wondering how bad that kid was that their parents leashed them .  no one does that any more, at least that I've seen.  just seeing other kids put on leashes would be enough to scare many of the others into line, I think (certainly worked that way with me, lol).  my parents also never took me anywhere in the middle of the night 'cause my bedtime was 7-9 pm (got later as I got older).

I remember seeing one kid with his grandmother on a harness and leash and he kept the leash stretched the ENTIRE time with his arms stretched out pulling her in every which direction.... At tha point I thought riddalin

 

[whitelop]

holtzchick wrote:

I remember seeing one kid with his grandmother on a harness and leash and he kept the leash stretched the ENTIRE time with his arms stretched out pulling her in every which direction.... At tha point I thought riddalin

LOL! They don't make the leashes like they did when I was a kid. Now they have the little animals as a backpack with a leash coming out of it! hahah. Its like supposed to soften the blow of looking at a leash, like we don't know what is going on. lmao.
I think the kids who ARE on leashes, their parents know. My husband and I call the kids "runners", because they'll be walking next to their parents fine, then all of a sudden take a really hard left and take off running. Most of the time, its in the parking lot. Thats when a leash would come in handy, and clothes line that sucker before he gets hit by a car.

I think its boy nature to be completely insane. I know my son is, he is wild from the time he wakes up until he goes to sleep. But he doesn't have a leash. I just keep him in the cart, and he does fine. He loves going to the store.
Hell, he'll probably need a leash in a few years. Its okay, I've come to terms with it.

 

[Imbrium]

I see nothing wrong with/degrading about leashes, lol. I think they get a bad rap for no good reason. keeps the kids out of oncoming traffic, from getting lost in the store, from being snatched by a predator, all that good stuff - seems like a sound parenting decision to me (then again, I don't have or ever plan to have kids that don't have paws, lol)

 

[ldoerr]

Imbrium wrote:

I see nothing wrong with/degrading about leashes, lol. I think they get a bad rap for no good reason. keeps the kids out of oncoming traffic, from getting lost in the store, from being snatched by a predator, all that good stuff - seems like a sound parenting decision to me (then again, I don't have or ever plan to have kids that don't have paws, lol)

I am SOOO with you. Leashes are a need that most do not use. I also will NEVER have kids. I do not like them at all.

 

[Hyatt101]

Lauren, I'm mildly offended! Just kidding

 

[agnesthelion]

Leashes for children are very controversial. Maybe it's a regional thing or a socio-economic thing.....but where I live and the people I'm around, leashes are strongly looked down upon. Here where I live, we tend to see leashes used by, for lack of a better way to say it, "trashier" parents. (that's just where I live no offense meant towards anyone who uses them). I would NEVER use a leash though. But then again, I would never need to. My son minds and does what I tell him to do. If not, we leave. I had to leave the grocery store one time and that was 2 years ago when he was 2. I've never had an issue since. He doesn't run from me, have tantrums or cause problems in public.
I thought it was ironic you are complaining about people at WalMart of all places, haha. It's walmart!!!! I refuse to even shop there! Lol. And you refer to people with children as people who "breed"? Yikes. Well, I understand your perspective now I guess........

 

[Imbrium]

I like SOME children, lol... but way too many aren't properly trained. I do refer to people who have children as "breeders" because technically, you DID choose to breed, lol. I don't necessarily mean it in a derogatory way... depends on the type of "breeder" - there's a "backyard breeder" version of parents (folks who really shouldn't have been allowed to procreate and whose children should be on leashes in public) and then there's GOOD parents with adorable, well behaved children who can shop in the same store as me without being viewed as an obstacle. I also frown upon people who have an adult:child ratio higher than 1:1, but that's just me (I feel the same way about cats (and I LOVE cats) - you should NEVER let them outnumber you!) . it's usually the people who are outnumbered by their kids that bug me.

 

[whitelop]

*looks around at all the cats and pouts* My cats out number me. I have 4. My MIL says that people with more than one cat are on their way to becoming crazy people.

I agree with Lisa about the leashes though. I think a leash is appropriate at say Disneyworld. Where there are 30,000 people and you have one child that refuses to hold your hand. Strap that kid up and be done with it. I think people just don't have a good enough handle on their kids, especially not to take them into stores. I find myself a lot of the time, wanting to parent someone elses child for them. I have also told an older child in a store who was acting a fool that I would and I quote "I will hit you like I own you, so stop your crap or you'll feel my wrath" I said it very calm, but firm. That kid peed his pants that day.(yeah, y'all think about that. I AM a parent and I WAS a nanny)
I DO shop at walmart though, one of the down-falls of not living near much is I'm limited to what stores I have. Unfortunately, walmart is one of the closest stores to me, and its very convenient for so many things, so its worth it.

I do agree with Jennifer though, about the 'breeder' part of it. We did choose to have kids. hahaha. So I guess technically we ARE breeders! My friend, her mom and myself went yard sale-ing in a really nice neighborhood one Saturday. The longer we walked around, the more we noticed that ALL the women looked the same and were dressed the same. We then started to notice that they ALL had kids around the same age. Like in groups, like they had 10 year olds, 8 year olds, 4 year olds and then like 2 year olds. ALL OF THEM! We talked about it later and we labeled them as the 'breeders' because the sheer number of children in that neighborhood and the similarities in ages. Its like they purposely had kids so they could be pregnant at the same time and their kids could always play with each other and go to school together. I think they may have been the definition of breeders in people.

 

[agnesthelion]

I guess I just take mild offense to the breeder term. I feel like it's a condescending term because it's usually applied towards animals. I also don't "train" my child I "raise" my child. I also find that the people who think they are the best parents are people that don't have children
That being said, my hubby and I are done with one child. I actually don't like children either! Hahaha I mean, other peoples kids tend to get on my nerves. But I don't judge other families on the amount that they have. You can just as easily raise one brat or 5 brats...it's your parenting style that matters. Although it would literally drive me clinically insane to have, say, 4 kids....some families manage wonderfully.
I get your perspective though. You don't have kids so you judge people that "breed". I know many people like you. But of course you are definetly entitled to your opinion.

 

[qtipthebun]

Kids scare me. They bite. And their teeth are sharper than bunnies'. (I used to teach pre-school...best form of birth control EVER...spend every day around 200 children)!!!

Buuuuut....what I hopped over here to say was thank you for Tippy's present!!! You should have seen her playing with the slinky last night! She was so amused...until it got stuck on her foot, chased her around the room, and then she foot flicked it!

 

[holtzchick]

I also find that the people who think they are the best parents are people that don't have children

Oh Lisa, but I really am the best parent... bunny parent that is

Awh, now I wish I had been part of this Christmas exchange, had I not been so busy with the move and settling in :/ theres always next year!

 

[qtipthebun]

I'm really wishing I had gotten in on the card swap!!! I hear some people are going to have pictures of bunnies on their cards! Maybe next year Tippy and I will join in on that.

 

[Imbrium]

*looks around at all the cats and pouts* My cats out number me. I have 4. My MIL says that people with more than one cat are on their way to becoming crazy people.

my best friend moved in with me for a while after my mom died. we had my mom's cat, Gir (I named him ) and my precious kitty... then one day my friend and her boyfriend were at his apartment complex getting his mail and they found this adorable little dumpster kitten that was friendly as could be despite being abandoned. Jason (the boyfriend) was worried I was going to be mad, but Taryn was like "you don't know her at all" lol... they got back to the house, she knocked on my bedroom door and when I opened it and saw her holding little Seiko, my heart melted and I said "of course we can keep her" (I even paid to get her spayed).

three cats + two people (the boyfriend didn't live with us... at first... long story that makes me very grumpy, I couldn't stand the guy and he was a godawful housemate) is what led to my "more cats than people" rule. maybe it was just our specific cats, but I swear to god they conspired against us. you'd come into a room and all three would be clustered together and they'd just FREEZE, like you caught them being up to no good. you also never knew who the naughty cat was when someone did something bad. I love cats, but man did I get creeped out when they outnumbered us .

I guess I just take mild offense to the breeder term. I feel like it's a condescending term because it's usually applied towards animals. I also don't "train" my child I "raise" my child.

I get your perspective though. You don't have kids so you judge people that "breed". I know many people like you. But of course you are definetly entitled to your opinion.

I honestly don't judge people for "breeding"... I judge them if they're bad parents and they breed. I also don't mean "breeder" in a bad way as a blanket term, it just works well as a description for people who have kids. I suppose "parents" would work, but it just feels weird now that "parents" can be younger than I am. I'm still young enough to think of parents as people old enough to have given birth to me.

I may occasionally refer to breeders in a negative way (most often when there aren't any of them in the conversation, and if there are I at least preface my rant with an apology because I'm polite enough that I wouldn't be saying that stuff in front of them if I felt it applied to them), but it's the same false generalization as when I say "I hate people" (I really do hate a lot of them, but obviously not all as I love coming to RO to chat with you guys).

I'm completely capable of judging parents as individuals and I think some of them do a wonderful job... but there are a lot of crappy parents in the world just like there are a lot of crappy bunny owners in the world. if I'm at walmart at 3 am and there are kids around, take a wild guess as to whether it's a good parent or a crappy one.

I guess what it comes down to is that it's not that I don't like kids... it's that I dislike a LOT of adults and since most people choose to have kids, it's logical to assume that I dislike a lot of adults that have kids. those of you in this conversation who have children are NOT people that I dislike and therefore have kids that I wouldn't dislike.

 

[whitelop]

I'm completely capable of judging parents as individuals and I think some of them do a wonderful job... but there are a lot of crappy parents in the world just like there are a lot of crappy bunny owners in the world. if I'm at walmart at 3 am and there are kids around, take a wild guess as to whether it's a good parent or a crappy one.

I guess what it comes down to is that it's not that I don't like kids... it's that I dislike a LOT of adults and since most people choose to have kids, it's logical to assume that I dislike a lot of adults that have kids. those of you in this conversation who have children are NOT people that I dislike and therefore have kids that I wouldn't dislike.

I completely agree with you. I go to the store a lot of the time in the middle of the night, after my son has long been in bed. Its quiet at night and I can take my time in the store and not have to deal with the stupid people. But occasionally I see someone in there at midnight-2am with a kid. Usually a toddler and it really urks me. The last time I saw a kid in walmart at like 11pm, it looked like she was my son's age and it was COLD outside and she just had pj's on with no socks, coat or hat. Just the little cotton, like disney pj's. (people with kids will know what I'm talking about, the matching sets) I mean, I put my cowboy boots on because they're lined and my feet were freezing and I was double layered, it was like 25* and she had basically no clothes on. I was pissed! Like to the point of saying things out loud to the cashier. THAT is not a good parent!

To be honest, I feel the same way about kids. I know that sounds crazy, since I AM a parent and I WAS a nanny. I loved the kids I had when I was a nanny and of course, I love my son. But other peoples kids, like kids I don't know, I don't really like. I would of course, help a child in need or a kid that fell down or whatever, my compassion for children covers that. BUT, for me it depends heavily on the person the child is attached too. Like, if I see your kid acting a fool in the store and you not doing anything about it, chances are, we would not be friends. And even my friends with kids, I don't really like their kids. lol. That sounds bad. Like when I was pregnant, a friend of a friend had a 1 year old and she asked me if I wanted to hold him to "get used to it" I just looked at her and said, 1. this is a 1 year old, there is NO holding that. 2. I know what its like to hold a kid, I spend more of my day with kids than you do, so I get it. 3. I don't like other peoples children. She just looked at me.

With that being said, I feel like if I met any of you with kids, I would love your kids because I really like all of you. Like Lisa, I feel like if we ever met, I would love your son to death because I KNOW you're a good parent and you would never take to child to walmart with no clothes on in the cold in the middle of the night! And I'm sure your son is very well behaved. Like mine, *watches son ride the cat through the living room, rolls eyes* lmao. :rabbithop

 

[agnesthelion]

Oh yes I agree parents with kids at walmart at 3am are probably not good parents. Lol. Sometimes it's easy to tell a bad parent from a good parent. Likemthose. Sometimes it's not though. Sometimes it could be a mom having a bad day. Being a parent is the hardest. Job. Ever. You can't even wrap your mind around how difficult it is until you are one. So saying all kids should be on leashes is a bit extreme. Kids will act up one time or another. I remember before I had kids (when I was the best parent ever, haha) I would see a kid having a tantrum and I admit, I would judge the mom. Like, control your kid! Then I had a child myself and was humbled beyond words. And so glad I never spoke my judgemental thoughts out loud to anyone so no one had to hear how wrong I was it's just one of those things in life that you can only learn through experiencing it yourself. So when a person with no children calls parents breeders and speaks as if mandatory leash laws and their ideas on parenting would solve all the kid "issues" it can come off a little harsh. But no worries. as I said, I don't really like kids either. I'm only having one!! I actually remember in my 20's I never even wanted children! So I understand how kids can be annoying sometimes...no doubt!

 

[whitelop]

I actually remember in my 20's I never even wanted children! So I understand how kids can be annoying sometimes...no doubt!

I was actually the same way. Well, not in my 20's clearly, because I am in my 20's. I was in my teenage years and I NEVER wanted to have kids. I didn't want to be responsible for another life. Then at 18 I became a nanny and changed my mind a little, then I had a kid at 21, so that DEFINITELY changed my mind! hahaha. By then though, I had already cared for 3 children full time, but being a nanny is COMPLETELY different than being a parent! I could go home to my own life when I was a nanny, now my life is my home and child. And now speaking of children, my son is feeding goldfish to one of our cats. Ughhh. :headsmack

 

[ldoerr]

I am ALMOST 20 (less than a month) and do not EVER want to have kids. I think that the only way I will have kids is if I adopt one that I do not have to potty train and can speak English already (+ a few other requirements). I am just not a fan of kids. I have been around them a lot and do not like them at any age, even teens (and yes I am 19 so technically a teen myself, still never like the kids I am around no mater their age).

 

[holtzchick]

Enough talk of children! How are your animals ? Have you started looking for homes for the hammies? How is the bonding going with your gliders? And last but not least how the heck are your bunnies doing? :happybunny: