So the other day we're hanging out at home and the doorbell rings. I answer the door and on the porch stood a little girl (probably around 8 or 9 years old). She said to me "Can I borrow three eggs? It's my mom's birthday and we're making her a cake." I knew I had the eggs so I told her I was going to go get them for her. I got them out of the fridge and when I gave them to her I asked her if she lived around here (trying to get to know the neighbors and all). She said she didn't. Then she asked me if she could have three more eggs. Uhhhh. This is about the time when I started becoming skeptical of her honestly. I told her that all I had were the three I gave her.
So I said nice to meet you she smiled at me and I went back inside and closed the door. Sheldon and I both thought something didn't seem quite right about the encounter. So of course we secretly watched her from our window upstairs to see where she went. Where she went was across the street to meet up with her little cohort. We watched as they found a peice of wood sat on the grass and cracked one of the eggs I had just given her onto the peice of wood. What the crap?? I'm all about science experiments but are you kidding me? Sheldon was like "What are you gonna do?" (He knew that I was not going to just watch the injustice.) I said "I'm just going to go talk to them."
I went outside and starting walking towards the two girls half expecting them to run away, but they didn't. They just looked at me and then looked away. Oh, except the 'cohort' made a lame attempt to cover the cracked egg with her body... gross. I asked them what they were doing and they told me they were making sure the eggs weren't rotten.... ...yeah.
So I wasn't mean or anything. I just explained that they lied to me in order to get the eggs and that they cost me money. I also reminded them that they were wasting food and that there are lots of people, probably in this very neighborhood, who don't have very much food to eat. Then I made them give me back the other two eggs. I asked them where they lived and they told me some other neighborhood. That was that. I went inside and used the eggs to make dinner.
I feel kind of bad for confronting the girls and scolding them. I mean, I don't even know them. It reminds me of the time the Costco worker yelled at me for leaving a watermellon in my cart and I told him he was a rude jerk who needed to improve his customer service skills. Also, I consider a watermellon heavy and aren't we supposed to leave heavy items in the cart??
My question is.... am I too bold? What would you have done in these situations? I know not everyone is willing to confront a total stranger when they think they're in the wrong. When should I just let things go?
14 comments:
Oh, Michelle, you are awesome. I think it's great that you said something to the girls. I just watched your videos of Asher. He's so cute! I had to laugh watching him climb out of the crib. I can't imagine my little boy ever being big enough to do that. Time flies, huh?
Becky
I would have probably done the same thing, but then I would have watched them leave and went to there parents and let them know. I am mean though.
So I say you go girl. I am grateful to people who are too bold. I think people are way too passive and then they have kids who ask for eggs from strangers and then brake them who knows they could have eggs your house. ;)
I applaud you! Too many people are afraid to say anything to someone elses kids. Kids think that they can get away with anything as long as their parents aren't around and then some can even get away with a lot. I am one who is not affraid of saying something if I see a kid misbehaving and I hope that people will do the same with my kids!
You rock is all I have to say.
I am all about the confrontation. Especially if it is with little bratty kids.
Some kid said "honk honk" to me as I was walking on the sidewalk and he was riding his bike. I stopped, looked at him and said, "Excuse me. You do not "honk honk" at me. I am a pedestrian. I am walking. You are on a bike. You do not have the right to be on the sidewalk. You need to be in the bike lane." He stood there frozen for a minute, and then said "Yes, ma'am".
Another time...I was driving to work, early, and pregnant... never a good combo. A kid walking to school was throwing rocks at cars. He hit my car. I pulled over got out, went up to him, and reamed him. I don't think he will ever throw a rock at another car.
And last but not least, Tyson had a big party for school. I needed a dress. The twins were like 4 months old, and I was excited to get to the mall to find something to wear. The twins were crying, and I was fed up with my post pregnant body, we were walking out and Merrick dropped his blanket. A women walking the mall stopped and yelled, you dropped your blanket, and kept staring at me. I thought she was gonna pick it up but she didnt. I went all the way back picked it up and she said, "Wow, you are one frazzled mom." Ok, seriously, how rude, so to make her feel the same, I said, "and walking the mall is not making you any thinner." oops... that one is just mean, but the other two at least I was telling kids not to misbehave!
Maybe you should have taken three more eggs and said, "You want more eggs?? HERE YA GO!!!" And crushed them over their heads. Let them explain to their parents how they ended up with eggs in their hair.
If it had been an adult I would've left it, but I'm not scared of kids. I would've totally confronted the kids, and if I'd known their parents, would've told them too.
Ok first of all the other comments made laugh out loud. Secondly, you totally did the right thing. I think more people should do stuff like this. It is very Leave it to Beaver, but let's face it, wouldn't you rather live in that kind of neighborhood in some ways? A place where people actually take responsibility and parents parent their children. Where neighbors have a common sense of decency and help each other out? I know I am old school and am not afraid to confront kids in a kind, yet firm way that says, "No. Breaking my eggs, throwing rocks at cars, or smarting off to an adult is not ok with me." I would have wanted to march them back to their house and let their parents know about the incident too.
Then again, parents can be pretty lame and that is usually the problem. I mean, one time at school I got a baby away from the school bus and his mom went and complained to the office that I touched her child. The kid's head was in front of the wheel or the bus as it was about to pull away! Are you kidding me? Of course people knew she was being crazy and was probably embarrassed by her own poor judgement but...the long and the short of it is, I applaud your confrontation in this matter.
I think you were totally in the right to confront and good for you. Truth is they are probably your neighbors but are too afraid to tell you. Also I think that in a lot of cases if you went to tell the parents they probably would have not cared what their kids did. Maybe I am just pessimistic. I think like Lora that it is good to take care of your neighbors and watch out for others. Plus at least someone was teaching them some sort of lesson. Plus the lying about making the cake for her mom's birthday, how cold. She was trying to pull on your heart strings to just take advantage of you. So I say way to go! Keep it up.
Heck yeah, I even do it in Primary. Last week, one of the little rugrat boys slapped his 19-yr-old pre-mission male teacher in the face, not hard, but trying to be funny. I was sitting up front and got up, walked to the back and told him that it is completely unacceptable to hit anyone for any reason and that he needed to apologize; right in the middle of Sharing Time. I brought it up in our Leadership training meeting on Sunday and everyone said that it was definitely the right thing to do. We just can't let them win. It's in their best interests. And Jen, you almost made me pee my pants.
I think what you really need to ask yourself is, "What would Dwight do?" and then do something just slightly less mean. So you did the right thing.
Nice work. :)
Nice work. :)
`Okay, I have also been without computer, TV, refrigerator, heat and sleeping on an air mattress for about a week, so I am coming late to this game, but you know I would have talked to them too. For me it started at a very young age when this bratty boy in sixth grade knocked my snow cone out of my hand (the ONLY one I could afford to buy at school for the whole year) and I popped him one in front of the principal! The boy got in trouble not me, but that was back in the good old days where you actually had the right to defend yourself. Before all of this PC garbage. It probably also helped that I was usually a goody-two-shoes and worked in the office and library and was the student body president!
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