QUOTE OF THE DAY (OR MORE): "No, no. You don't understand. This is an '89 Calico. I'm pretty sure that exceeds the Kelly Blue Book value. The cat's totaled." --A comedian whose name I forget talking about a vet who presents a $3,000 bill for a 12-year-old cat

Tuesday, August 25, 2009

This one time? At band camp?

Remember the annoying yet amiable character from American Pie who constantly tells stories about band camp? "This one time, at band camp?"






That's my 11-year-old. He has the wonderful gift of gab, which will serve him well as he gushes corporate-speak in a major company, mingles at a party, or takes a sales job.

At his present age, though, it is sometimes background noise distracting me from what I need to accomplish. Unfortunately one of my faults is that I cannot concentrate with any kind of irregular sound in the background: a tv, the sound of a pencil tap-tap-tapping against a desk, wrappers being crunched, chips being chewed, my son jabbering... (as mama-face says, don't judge me. I know I have issues....).







Usually what he's doing when he talks to me is rehashing a movie or a tv show in painstaking detail. Ya know the corporate-speak term "high level"? Yeah. He doesn't do high level. He does,
to use more corporate speak, granular. In excitedly describing a [bad] movie he just saw, he tells the story in great, painstaking detail, blow by blow, scene by scene, recreating it as if you were sitting there watching the movie. That's great - except I don't have 2 hours to listen to him describe a movie. It would be one thing if he uttered a few sentences and moved on... but... he doesn't. He's like the energizer bunny. He keeps going and going and going... until I finally must say "hey buddy- can you just give me the summary?" (which doesn't have the desired effect)







Someday he'll make a perfect filibusterer in the Senate...









Do your kids do this?







































16 comments:

  1. That line always makes me laugh...I can just picture your son's stories. I have that same problem with noises and usually my students pick it up immediately. And for some reason for me whistling falls under this category too. I've apparently got issues too and my husband thinks it crazy and likes to whistle to songs in the car. Not so funny to me. My five year olds thoughts are beginning to go on. She loves to tell me stories that sometimes do seem to go on for an long time.

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  2. I reckon there's NO ECOMONY OF WORDS coming outta my mouth, so who'm I to complain?

    (I'm Kel.)

    I loathe the description of one's dream(s) and find even TWO WORDS on them to be "granular."

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  3. Oddly enough, I think it might be a boy thing. My neighbors little boy comes to my house and entertains me with never-ending, play by plays of the latest football and/or baseball saga. My oldest nephew used to do the same thing, endlessly talking about whatever he was currently obsessed with. The good news is it probably WILL serve him well later in life.

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  4. Oh lordy do my kids do this. I was just backing away from my six year old mm-hmm-ing him while he explained something in excruciating detail.

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  5. One time, at band camp... guess WHAT mom, you know that girl that i can't stand, she was like, why do you wear that hat all the time?, and i was like, i don't know, and she was like, well you look like a tom boy, and i was like, well you look like a princess wannabee, i bet you even like hannah montana. then she said, well, no, i like high school musical...and i was like, eww, and she was like, we should be best friends!!! can you believe that mom?.... mom?.... mom? ..... what's for dinner mom? (i'm just trying to go to the bathroom in peace...is that to much to ask?) lol

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  6. Mine are all past that noisy follow me around tell me every thing stage. 4 out of 5 of my children were band geeks though. Two of them belonged to band when they actually made T-shirts for the band that said "This one time at Band Camp". They wore them until they were full of holes.

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  7. Yikes! It drives me crazy when Hubby starts describing a movie I have not seen in detail. I think I might have more patience with a child....or maybe NOT.

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  8. Mitchell does that and it makes me NUTS! I should mention that he is also 11. Perhaps it is the age? (I have self-induced amnesia, so I can't really remember if the 2 older one did it when they were 11....)

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  9. Gee, thanks a lot. I actually HAVE a band camp story brewing and now I have to come up with a different title.

    Foul! Foul, I say!

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  10. OH Yes, mine do it too but imagine it with girlie high pitch screams and giggles.

    Love the header!

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  11. Ugh, Sam does that! More annoying is, "Um, Mama? Do you remeber...?" and he'll go on & on about something that happened earlier in the day.

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  12. This made me laugh. I remember when my niece used to do this and it would drive my sister mental.

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  13. hahahaha! the movie recounting thing sounds exactly like my brother. he once did a whole recount thing on drag me to hell and i nearly wanted that to happen.

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  14. OH MY

    I hate repetitive noises. clicking, tapping, etc. It makes me crazy. I'm infamous in my home for this!! For some reasons my boys are much more prone to the whole tapping, etc. thing. Weird.

    This is NOT what your post is about I KNOW; i just had to share our commonality.

    Why is that boys feel that they must repeat a movie or whatever word for word? Of course girls will filibuster on one single topic forever...

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  15. My middle boy doesn't do summaries either. We went on a two-mile walk last summer and the whole time he was telling me about Naruto (maybe ... it was something Naruto-like), the characters, and their powers.

    All I could think is, "Son, could you put some math facts in that head of yours?"

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  16. Both your sons are adorable, but he seems to have that congress look. Next time just ask him what happens at the end, lol.

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