Back to Cool

It's that time again--Back to School. As a mom who needs her summer downtime, I'm wondering what happened to the after Labor Day start date for going back to school. Here it is mid August and my leisurely morning coffee beside the computer has suddenly vanished. For the past month, my mail box has been overflowing with advertisments for back to school gear. Since I have a daughter starting middle school, I thought I'd better pay attention, because she wasn't. I may have been around since the Cretaceous Period, but I do know it doesn't do to show up at school on the first day in the smelly sneakers you've worn all summer or the T-shirt that swallowed a half bottle of ketchup at the beach and turned pink in the wash.

It's Back to Cool time--or not. I checked out the ads from my local department store. Can you send your daughter out the door with Jane's Pawnshop blazing across her chest above a skull and cross bones? Underneath is says, Knockin' and Rockin'. Who writes this stuff? Not anyone who ever changed a diaper. Or how about, It's all about me. Deal with it. It's sort of like putting a big warning label on your kid-- Toxic child, beware. At this point I'm thinking maybe a couple bottles of Rit dye could make the ketchup stain part of a very cool tie-dye pattern.

There was one shirt, however, that appealed to my rebellous but practical sense of humor. It said:
Homework?
1. I lost it. (Bad choice. If you're going to get nailed, come up with something more entertaining. Teachers admire creativity, or should.)
2. My sister ate it. (Glad to see innocent dogs are no longer taking the blame for this one. Poor sisters have inherited the task.)
3. The flying monkeys took it. (Flying monkeys? From Oz? Does the Wicked Witch know about this? If I was still a teacher, I'd give extra points for the monkeys.)

I did happen to notice a boy in my daugther's class wearing a Beatles T-shirt, which I thought was pretty cool since I cut my rock and roll teeth on The Beatles' music. I think I'd like a T-shirt that simply said, Imagine. You remember John Lennon's song, right? Seems to me this is the sort of spirit we want to instill in our kids. Imagine.

Lorelle

posted by Lorelle @ 5:55 PM