Remember when you were a kid and your parents had stupid sayings, do you still remember them today and if you are a parent, do you find yourself using them with your own kids? things like these from my own mum. When she caught us up to no good, "do you want a good hiding?", I always wanted to reply ith something like, "well not really, I'd prefer an ice cream", but you didn't dare, or this one. "if you fall off that wall and break your legs don't come running to me", how mad was that? Or my mate's mum, now she had some crackers such as. "you can't eat a Mars Bar if you haven't got one" there were many others I heard, like, "don't let me catch you nicking sweets from the shop", hundreds of kids must have thought it was fine to nick them, as long as their parents didn't catch them. when you asked for something they thought was expensive you got one of two replies, "do you think I'm made of money?" or the other one, "HOW MUCH! Do you know how long I have to work to earn that", or "money doesn't grow on trees you know", this was a mad one because sometimes they'd say "hold on, I'll just go and pick some money off the money tree in the garden", when you asked for something. A releative of mine had a cracker, kid would ask, "dad can I have 50P please?" and he'd feign outrage and reply," 40P! what do you want 30P for". I heard a good one recently, a bloke was on about how his son was getting to 'that age' and the problems that came with it, I assume the lad must have been in his mid teens, his mate replied "well at least you've got a son, you've only got one dick to worry about, I've got a daughter, and I've got to worry about bleeding loads of dicks. I found myself using the same sayings on my kids that my parents had used on me, one day I was talking to my stepson, we were having a drink and laughing and joking, "you know, something terrible happened the other day" he told me, "really what was that?" I asked, feeling suddenly concerned, "well, your grandson, my son, did something and I shouted at him and I said exactly what you used to say to me" he replied, then added, "and suddenly I realised, I was turning into the old man", he always calls me the old man, never dad or anything like that, still it doesn't bother me, lol.
The one that got me from Dad was "do as I say not as I do." I am sure there are many others who got it worse than that.
That's a bit like the other one when I was a kid, it went something like this, "mum can I go down the canal?" she'd give you that look, "NO, you cannot go to the canal", you'd reply, "awe mum, but Paul's going" and she'd reply, "well if Paul stuck his hand in the fire would you!" it was more of a statement than a question, and that was the end of the conversation.
Oh yes, there was that also! But I grew up in a family with six kids and it was total chaos most of the time. Don't know how we all ended up as well as we did. Perhaps there is something to be said for 'live and let be.' The idiots will burn, drown and drive themselves into death. It's just Darwinism at work. Survival of the fittest so to speak.
My father would always say "look with your eyes not your hands". I remember it because I was a very logical child so I hated the idea that ones looks with hands. I get what he meant but that is what eyes are for,
stupid sayings by parents, are the ones they thought sounded cool when they were kids. something to think about the next time you think something sound cool to you. something, anything that sounds romantically succinct, without asking the next question or logical analysis. (my dad used to say "sing before seven, cry before eleven", and my mom used to say "you can't fight city hall")
