There are moments that I find myself doing things or saying things just because my parents did them that way. It's like that story about the woman who cut the ends off the roast before she put it in the pan. When she was asked about it she said she did it because her mother did it that way. Then her mother was asked why she had done that same thing, and she had the same reply. Come to find out the grandmother cut the ends off the roast because she didn't have a pan big enough for it to fit in.
When I make a bed I always tuck the corners a certain way. It was never a thought to me, it was just the way mom did it. It wasn't until I was much older that I realized we did that because mom was a nurse, and it was called a hospital corner. I just thought that everyone made their beds that way.
I have a very particular way to fold towels. One time an old roommate pointed it out to me. I hadn't thought about it before, but that's how mom folds towels.
I'm thrown off when I let someone borrow my toothpaste and they put a big thumbprint in the middle of the tube. That is a nuance I picked up from my dad.
The last time my mom was in town we had been out and about and I was backing into my garage. My mom asked me why I did that and before I could answer she said "Because you're Gerald Floyd's daughter." Actually it is because my bike is hanging where the driver's side door would open if I drove in forward.......and I am Gerald Floyd's daughter.
So what things have you picked up from your parents that are just second nature?
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
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7 comments:
Oh, my goodness... mine is a saying. My mother's answer to any complaint (or actually, anything at all if she's in a bad mood) is, "You're going to think ____!" As in, "Mom, I'm hungry." "You're going to think hungry!" "Mom, the house is on fire." "You're going to think on fire!"
I started doing it to make fun of her, and it's become a habit. Yikes.
Awwww. I love the picture of you and sweet Addy!!
I arrange my kitchen like my mom. Cups on the left side of the sink, plates on the right. Silverware in the drawer under the plates.
We had some friends over once and she wanted a glass of water. She almost went through all the cabinets looking for glasses. She said "I should have known it since you are left handed." That really wasn't it. It's the way mom does it.
I love this blog!
I also fold towels like my parents. Ronnie doesn't do it like me...which is really annoying! And I load the dishwasher like them too!
How's 4th grade? Miss you So much!
I've thought about this one for a bit and can only come up with this:
Once I was at a rodeo thing with my brother. I had my 32oz styrofoam cup in my hand ... holding it from the top ... by the lid. A woman came up and said, "Are you Kevin's sister?" I said, "Yeah", and she just smiled. As I looked over at him he had the exact same posture.
Our mother always had something to drink with her wherever we went ... now he and I do it ... and even hold our cup the same way.
From my dad I learned to lie ... or to "tell stories" might be a better way to say it. He could tell the biggest "stories" right off the top of his head ... never miss a beat. If we asked him a question and he didn't know, he had no problem just making something up.
I started really noticing it when I began teaching. The students would ask me something and it wasn't until after the explanation that I realized ... that wasn't true at all. Oops. So why do I tell stories when the truth would be just as good? Just cuz!
I imagine there are tons of things I do just cuz..and I can't think of them, because they are "normal" to me. As for my kitchen, my mother unpacked when I moved recently so the stuff is where she wanted it to be, and I'm not going to rearrange it all. The towels? I fold like my mom...right now... because they fit in the cabinet better. In my previous house, they fit better folded a different way, so that's how I did it then.
OH! We don't eat the end piece of the bread (we call it the heel) because it has to stay with the rest of the loaf until the bitter end! And then be thrown away. And we always cut cake and brownies in an even line in the pan...or we go back and even it out (those bites don't count!!)
I don't know that there is anything I do that resembles my mom. She didn't spend a lot of time emphasizing housekeeping. Although, when she wanted me to vacuum, she wanted me to get the baseboards. Now, when I do vacuum, I am ridiculously thorough and I get those baseboards! I'm actually more slovenly and disorganized like my dad. I'm also ornery, broody, moody, and stubborn like my dad. I don't think me or my brother look like either one of our parents, nor really do we look like siblings. Occasionally, though, when I am visiting with people who know us both I will hear these words, "You looked like your brother just now when you said . . . " Sometimes I hear my mom's voice come out of my mouth and that's a little scary.
I don't do many things like my mother, more so like my father. I organize things the same way. The older I get and the more time I spend with my father, I see how much alike we are. When I am at their house, my dad and I wake up and hit the floor running...we unload the dishwasher, start a load of laundry and THEN we have our first cup of coffee. Neither one of us talk those until that first sip of black brew!
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