Three out of five parents said that their biggest fear is that something will happen to their children. If you are wondering about what the other two said, don't. They either lied or misunderstood the question.
Since I can't always be there to protect and watch over the kids I do what I can to provide them with the tools and skills to handle situations as they arise. And in my personal experience I have seen more than a few things happen.
I went through the Northridge Earthquake, I was evacuated from a forest fire in 1985, went through the riots in 1992 and have lost more than a few friends to cancer, drunk drivers and suicides. As 'D' used to say, "Shit happens."
This afternoon I took my son around the house and showed him again where all the flashlights are. I showed him the earthquake kits, the first aid kits and the fire extinguishers. Spent time reminding him that I put the batteries in upside down so that you can't accidentally turn the light on and run the battery down.
He knows how to dial 911 on the cell, the home phone and on a rotary phone. Not really sure that he'll ever encounter a rotary phone, but I like to be thorough.
Midway through it all he asked me if I was really worried about anything happened. I lied a little. I told him that I just want to be safe. After all he is a hair short of nine. I don't really want him worrying that something could happen any time and I knew that my response would alleviate that concern.
I really don't worry about it. It is not a conscious thought, but it comes up with enough regularity. You really don't know what could happen. If G-d forbid we are in a car accident and I am unconscious I want him to stay calm and call for help.
If an earthquake hits at school I want him to stay calm. I drilled him on that. Stay calm and make smart decisions. You can be excited once you are safe.
In the end all we can do is try to give them the tools and skills to deal with what comes and hope that it all works out.
Excuse me now, I have to go hug and kiss the kids once or twice.
Schoolhouse Rock - Had To Include a Few of These
Three is a Magic Number
Conjunction Junction
Interplanet Janet
Conjunction Junction
Interplanet Janet
Sunday Evening Musical Intermission
Before we move on to our next post here is another glimpse at what is playing on iTunes tonight. Go Shuffle feature Go!
The Fire Inside - Bob Seger
I Love The Way You Love Me - John Michael Montgomery
Love Reign O'er Me - The Who
Jackson - Johnny Cash/ June Carter Cash
City of Blinding Lights - U2
I Melt - Rascal Flatts
Knock The Cover Off The Ball - The Natural Soundtrack
The John Dunbar Theme - Dances With Wolves
S.O.S .- Abba
Rebel Yell - Billy Idol
We've Got Tonight - Bob Seger
Ring of Fire- Ray Charles
The Fire Inside - Bob Seger
I Love The Way You Love Me - John Michael Montgomery
Love Reign O'er Me - The Who
Jackson - Johnny Cash/ June Carter Cash
City of Blinding Lights - U2
I Melt - Rascal Flatts
Knock The Cover Off The Ball - The Natural Soundtrack
The John Dunbar Theme - Dances With Wolves
S.O.S .- Abba
Rebel Yell - Billy Idol
We've Got Tonight - Bob Seger
Ring of Fire- Ray Charles
Teaching Responsibility to Children
This has been a painful weekend for all sorts of reasons. At times it has felt like someone tied the anchor to the Titanic around my waist and it has been all that I can do to keep from drowning. Life has kicked me in the balls, punched me in the mouth and slapped me across the face.
So how does this relate to teaching children how to be responsible? Well, the kids have been watching me deal with these moments. They have seen me bug eyed, cross eyed and have told me that they didn't know that I could swear for an hour without taking a breath.
And they have seen me finish venting, cool down and take care of the things that needed to be taken care of. I have mixed emotions about all of this. I prefer that they be isolated from grown up issues that they cannot completely understand nor deal with.
Don't misunderstand, nothing so terrible has happened that I am truly worried about them. And I do want to them to see that sometimes grown ups get scared. But I want to do it in as controlled a manner as possible. I want them to learn that fear doesn't mean panic.
I want them to see that you can be upset and still take care of your responsibilities. I won't have them grow up to be people with no coping skills. I won't allow them to go crazy and spout off like this kid.
They are watching us carefully, studying our moves, reactions and actions. They'll see their parents go a little meshugah. They'll watch the mishegoss and see that life never stops and that we do what we have to do. We do it because it is the right thing. We do it because it is necessary and because that is the only way to make things better.
In my mind I can see myself making out like a Jewish Bruce Lee.
There is only one small problem, I don't have any nunchucks anymore. Guess I better ask for a new pair for Chanukah.
So how does this relate to teaching children how to be responsible? Well, the kids have been watching me deal with these moments. They have seen me bug eyed, cross eyed and have told me that they didn't know that I could swear for an hour without taking a breath.
And they have seen me finish venting, cool down and take care of the things that needed to be taken care of. I have mixed emotions about all of this. I prefer that they be isolated from grown up issues that they cannot completely understand nor deal with.
Don't misunderstand, nothing so terrible has happened that I am truly worried about them. And I do want to them to see that sometimes grown ups get scared. But I want to do it in as controlled a manner as possible. I want them to learn that fear doesn't mean panic.
I want them to see that you can be upset and still take care of your responsibilities. I won't have them grow up to be people with no coping skills. I won't allow them to go crazy and spout off like this kid.
They are watching us carefully, studying our moves, reactions and actions. They'll see their parents go a little meshugah. They'll watch the mishegoss and see that life never stops and that we do what we have to do. We do it because it is the right thing. We do it because it is necessary and because that is the only way to make things better.
In my mind I can see myself making out like a Jewish Bruce Lee.
There is only one small problem, I don't have any nunchucks anymore. Guess I better ask for a new pair for Chanukah.
Haveil Havalim #242- Taking Responsibility Edition
Welcome to Haveil Havalim #242, the taking responsibility edition. This week my friend Joshuapundit had intended to handle the carnival. And I am confident that he would have done a fine job had I not screwed things up.
I inadvertently left out a letter in his email address and as a result he didn't receive any submissions. So with my apologies to him and the rest of you here is a quick version of HH for your review.
Mordechai presents "You Will All Be Listening To Him One Day . . ." posted at lubavitch.com Chabad-Lubavitch news site.
David Morris presents Shaking Your Baby to Death posted at Tzedek-Tzedek."
Yisrael Medad presents LGF Gets Dainty posted at My Right Word.
Yisrael Medad presents Kiss Your What? Certainly Not posted at My Right Word.
Yisrael Medad presents My Right Word: Muslim War Criminals posted at My Right Word.
Yisrael Medad presents JPost.com | BlogCentral | Green-Lined | 'The Jewish Terrorist' posted at Green-Lined.
Mottel presents Dr. David Luchins and a Little Blog by Mottel posted at Letters of Thought.
Lady-Light presents Dr. Siderer's Questions: Goldstone Has No Answers posted at Tikkun Olam.
The Real Shliach presents The Jew posted at The Real Shliach.
Lady-Light presents Leonid Meteor Shower: Impact? posted at Tikkun Olam.
Jacob Richman presents 90 Jewish and Israeli Twitter Lists posted at Good News from Israel.
Lady-Light presents Murder at Ft. Hood: a Coward Strikes posted at Tikkun Olam.
Eliyahu Fink presents When Times Are Tough posted at Pacific Jewish Center | Rabbi.
Lady-Light presents While the Monkeys Swing from the Trees, the Civilized Learn and Discover. . . posted at Tikkun Olam.
Maya presents A creepy piece of history posted at How to Be Israeli.
Toby Curwin presents Does that really count? posted at A Time of the Signs.
Maya presents Stereotypes are fun! (Please help...) posted at How to Be Israeli.
Benji Lovitt presents Updated Tour Schedule (Subtitle: Insomnia and Other Things That Suck) posted at What War Zone???.
Benji Lovitt presents Heartbreak Kotel, Dome of the Jailhouse Rock, and Other Failed Israeli Elvis Songs posted at What War Zone???
rutimizrachi presents Who's your daddy? posted at Ki Yachol Nuchal!
Ben-Yehudah presents A Jerusalem Bus Map,...Finally! posted at Esser Agaroth
Batya presents Ya'akov Teitel, "Perfect Gentleman" posted at Shiloh Musings.
Jacob Richman presents Good News from Israel: Photos of the Torah Dedication at the Maalot David Shul posted at Good News from Israel.
Toby Curwin presents Ruby Rooftops in the Rain posted at I Wish I Were a Photographer.
Shmuel Sokol presents MK Aryeh Bibi (Kadima) "Jewish holy places must remain open!" posted at תורת ישראל.
Maya presents It wasn't just Kiryat Bialik... posted at How to Be Israeli.
Ben-Yehudah presents The Real Story Behind Ya'akov Teitel posted at Esser Agaroth.
Cosmic X presents Dudu Elharar Tells It Like It Is posted at ****** Cosmic X in Jerusalem ******.
Cosmic X presents Kahane Memorial and the Israel Press posted at ****** Cosmic X in Jerusalem
Cosmic X presents Settler Teens Form Yaakov Teitel Fan Club posted at ****** Cosmic X in Jerusalem
Eric presents What’s The Word On J-Street? posted at The Israel Situation.
Yisroel presents Israel: Marching Through the Economic Meltdown posted at Artzeinu.
Yisroel presents Parshat Lech Lecha: The First Mitzvah Given to a Jew Is To Move To Israel! posted at Artzeinu.
Joel Katz presents Religion and State in Israel - November 2, 2009 (Section 1) posted at Religion and State in Israel."
Joel Katz presents Religion and State in Israel - November 2, 2009 (Section 2) posted at Religion and State in Israel.
Yehoishophot Oliver presents Love of Hashem posted at A Chassidishe farbrengen.
Mordechai Torczyner presents Would you watch this movie? posted at The Rebbetzin's Husband.
Hadassah Sabo Milner presents My Judaism – Submissions « In the Pink.
Shira Salamone presents A typical Conservative B. Mitzvah celebration?
Mordechai Torczyner presents You Make the Shiur! posted at The Rebbetzin's Husband.
Shira Salamone presents Lech L'Cha/Vayera smackdown, or G-d's a sexist posted at ON THE FRINGE—AL TZITZIT.
Shira Salamone presents HaShem's chutzpah posted at ON THE FRINGE—AL TZITZIT.
That concludes this edition. Submit your blog article to the next edition of haveil havalim using our carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.
Technorati tags: haveil havalim, blog carnival.
I inadvertently left out a letter in his email address and as a result he didn't receive any submissions. So with my apologies to him and the rest of you here is a quick version of HH for your review.
Mordechai presents "You Will All Be Listening To Him One Day . . ." posted at lubavitch.com Chabad-Lubavitch news site.
David Morris presents Shaking Your Baby to Death posted at Tzedek-Tzedek."
Yisrael Medad presents LGF Gets Dainty posted at My Right Word.
Yisrael Medad presents Kiss Your What? Certainly Not posted at My Right Word.
Yisrael Medad presents My Right Word: Muslim War Criminals posted at My Right Word.
Yisrael Medad presents JPost.com | BlogCentral | Green-Lined | 'The Jewish Terrorist' posted at Green-Lined.
Mottel presents Dr. David Luchins and a Little Blog by Mottel posted at Letters of Thought.
Antisemitism
The Real Shliach presents The Jew posted at The Real Shliach.
Culture
Jacob Richman presents 90 Jewish and Israeli Twitter Lists posted at Good News from Israel.
Lady-Light presents Murder at Ft. Hood: a Coward Strikes posted at Tikkun Olam.
Eliyahu Fink presents When Times Are Tough posted at Pacific Jewish Center | Rabbi.
Lady-Light presents While the Monkeys Swing from the Trees, the Civilized Learn and Discover. . . posted at Tikkun Olam.
History
Ilana-Davita presents Righteous Among the Nations posted at Ilana-Davita.Maya presents A creepy piece of history posted at How to Be Israeli.
Humor
Maya presents Stereotypes are fun! (Please help...) posted at How to Be Israeli.
Benji Lovitt presents Updated Tour Schedule (Subtitle: Insomnia and Other Things That Suck) posted at What War Zone???.
Benji Lovitt presents Heartbreak Kotel, Dome of the Jailhouse Rock, and Other Failed Israeli Elvis Songs posted at What War Zone???
Israel
Ben-Yehudah presents A Jerusalem Bus Map,...Finally! posted at Esser Agaroth
Batya presents Ya'akov Teitel, "Perfect Gentleman" posted at Shiloh Musings.
Jacob Richman presents Good News from Israel: Photos of the Torah Dedication at the Maalot David Shul posted at Good News from Israel.
Toby Curwin presents Ruby Rooftops in the Rain posted at I Wish I Were a Photographer.
Shmuel Sokol presents MK Aryeh Bibi (Kadima) "Jewish holy places must remain open!" posted at תורת ישראל.
Maya presents It wasn't just Kiryat Bialik... posted at How to Be Israeli.
Ben-Yehudah presents The Real Story Behind Ya'akov Teitel posted at Esser Agaroth.
Cosmic X presents Dudu Elharar Tells It Like It Is posted at ****** Cosmic X in Jerusalem ******.
Cosmic X presents Kahane Memorial and the Israel Press posted at ****** Cosmic X in Jerusalem
Cosmic X presents Settler Teens Form Yaakov Teitel Fan Club posted at ****** Cosmic X in Jerusalem
Eric presents What’s The Word On J-Street? posted at The Israel Situation.
Yisroel presents Israel: Marching Through the Economic Meltdown posted at Artzeinu.
Yisroel presents Parshat Lech Lecha: The First Mitzvah Given to a Jew Is To Move To Israel! posted at Artzeinu.
Joel Katz presents Religion and State in Israel - November 2, 2009 (Section 1) posted at Religion and State in Israel."
Joel Katz presents Religion and State in Israel - November 2, 2009 (Section 2) posted at Religion and State in Israel.
Judaism
Mordechai Torczyner presents Would you watch this movie? posted at The Rebbetzin's Husband.
Hadassah Sabo Milner presents My Judaism – Submissions « In the Pink.
Shira Salamone presents A typical Conservative B. Mitzvah celebration?
Torah
Shira Salamone presents Lech L'Cha/Vayera smackdown, or G-d's a sexist posted at ON THE FRINGE—AL TZITZIT.
Shira Salamone presents HaShem's chutzpah posted at ON THE FRINGE—AL TZITZIT.
Personal/Miscellaneous
Elianah-Sharon presents Being the Mom of a Special Needs Kid.
Mimi presents Kosher Cooking Carnival #46 is Here!
Mimi presents Kosher Cooking Carnival #46 is Here!
That concludes this edition. Submit your blog article to the next edition of haveil havalim using our carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.
Technorati tags: haveil havalim, blog carnival.
A Collection of Songs
Late night iTune Shuffle sample:
Hello Mr. Heartache - Dixie Chicks
We Gotta Get Out Of This Place - The Animals
Smokin' In The Boys Room - Motley Crue
Hello It's Me - Todd Rundgren
Dear God -Sarah McLachlan
Creep - Radiohead
Hammer To Fall - Queen
Hey There Lonely Girl - Eddie Holman
I Can't Stop Loving You - Ray Charles
Hello Mr. Heartache - Dixie Chicks
We Gotta Get Out Of This Place - The Animals
Smokin' In The Boys Room - Motley Crue
Hello It's Me - Todd Rundgren
Dear God -Sarah McLachlan
Creep - Radiohead
Hammer To Fall - Queen
Hey There Lonely Girl - Eddie Holman
I Can't Stop Loving You - Ray Charles
How Twitter Has Impacted My Blogging
At long last the incredible story about how Twitter has impacted my blogging. Yes, the post in which the world famous TheJackB pulls back the curtain and demonstrates that the wizard is a just an ordinary man.
It is a thoroughly unscientific analysis. I joined Twitter in December of 2008, but didn't really start using it with any regularity until somewhere around March of this year. For those keeping track that left me a hair shy of my fifth blogiversary.
If I am not mistaken I have chosen to tweet and not blog about certain stories. I suspect that if I took a hard look I'd find that those were the stories that I classify as caught my eye. A collection of odd stories is really what it is.
That doesn't mean that I don't still blog about them, I just do it less frequently. If you consider that the pace at which I blog has slowed down it is reasonable to wonder if there is any correlation between that as well. It could be that it is more coincidental than anything else.
On a slightly different tack I have noticed that traffic to the blog has been progressively increasing. It seems to follow the number of Twitter followers.
So in the final unscientific analysis I'd have to say that I am pleased with Twitter.I find it to be an interesting source of information and a useful tool that I can rely upon.
It is a thoroughly unscientific analysis. I joined Twitter in December of 2008, but didn't really start using it with any regularity until somewhere around March of this year. For those keeping track that left me a hair shy of my fifth blogiversary.
If I am not mistaken I have chosen to tweet and not blog about certain stories. I suspect that if I took a hard look I'd find that those were the stories that I classify as caught my eye. A collection of odd stories is really what it is.
That doesn't mean that I don't still blog about them, I just do it less frequently. If you consider that the pace at which I blog has slowed down it is reasonable to wonder if there is any correlation between that as well. It could be that it is more coincidental than anything else.
On a slightly different tack I have noticed that traffic to the blog has been progressively increasing. It seems to follow the number of Twitter followers.
So in the final unscientific analysis I'd have to say that I am pleased with Twitter.I find it to be an interesting source of information and a useful tool that I can rely upon.
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