I looked out the window and saw my next door neighbor’s 17 year old son and his delinquent friend obviously up to no good. I couldn’t hear the heated whispers, but I could tell by their body language that something was up. My instincts were correct. The delinquent friend handed the neighbor’s kid a 40 which he hid in a storage bench in their driveway. I called Boyfiend who was in the back yard and said, “Yo, X and his delinquent friend just hid a 40 in the bench in the driveway. You should take it just to fuck with them.” Boyfiend laughed, but wasn’t interested. I said that I should go next door and take it myself. He told me just to leave it alone. So I did.
But what I really want to do is tell his parents. The idea of him drinking and driving the family van, which he’s already smashed up enough in the month he’s had his license, is too much. It was bad when he and his delinquent friends were arguing on the front porch late at night about who owed who money for weed, but in my opinion alcohol is much worse than a little pot. Alcohol leads to blackouts and hit and runs. Weed generally leads to driving 15 in a 35. Maybe I’ll take the 40 anyway.
soula | 21-Jan-08 at 6:24 pm | Permalink
yeah and then they will get in a fight with eachother–accusing eachother of taking it. ha. and you will have to listen to that arguement, rather than the weed one. lol
mix | 21-Jan-08 at 6:34 pm | Permalink
Clearly we were more enlightened teenagers then your neighbor. Also my parents went out of town a lot. Although I never did hide a 40. In fact I’ve never had one in my life.
boyfiend | 21-Jan-08 at 10:22 pm | Permalink
Never drank a 40? WTF? I’ll get you one right now.
andrea | 21-Jan-08 at 10:32 pm | Permalink
I love the idea of them fighting about who took the 40 from the cookie jar. (Who me, dude? Yeah, you./Couldn’t be./Then, who?)
Alcohol and teenagers breed stupidity. Take the 40.
cagey | 23-Jan-08 at 4:41 pm | Permalink
I would have taken the 40. Maybe. The problem is that adulthood and a steady paycheck came with a refined taste for microbrew. Damnit.
Elizabeth Jones | 25-Jan-08 at 1:40 pm | Permalink
I know how you feel. I don’t know what it is about having kids that makes you want to parent every kid you see. When our teenage next door neighbor was dragging his ten year old brother along on a skateboard tied with a rope to the riding lawn mower the other day, it took everything I had to not march over there and say, “young man, you should…” But I stopped myself.
Fraulein N | 05-Feb-08 at 2:57 pm | Permalink
I’d send the parents an anonymous letter.