Awkward moment?

[Cindiloohoo]

Quote:
Ahhh....but that's just your perception...

From our perspective, and probably everybody else who saw it at Chuck-e-Cheese, you are the hero....

I'll second that

Good job Boyd. Who knows you may be the only man that has shown that little man any love lately. I think it was nice.

 

[TigerLilly]

Quote:
And it's a shame that the way things are in the world today that you would have to worry about the incident to begin with. This part of your post should make it all worthwhile. You were in the right place at the right time (heaven forbid the child had walked up to a child molester); thank God for that. Enjoy the good feeling for what it was and don't let a little awkwardness take away from it!

 

[Sir Birdaholic]

My brother got divorced several years ago, so he moved to Arkansas. He has 2 kids that stayed with the ex. He missed them so much. He was in the front yard watching the neighbor girls play, & missing his own kids playing. The neighbor came out & yelled at him, "What are you looking at, freak?". He was blown away by this, & turned around & went inside. He told me about this a few days later, & I felt so bad for him. Well, if anybody knows me, I HAD to go have a talk with the rude neighbor.

sp.

 

[Marshmallow Man]

It's too bad. I seem to attract the attention of 1-5 year olds in stores and such. When I'm in a checkout lane and they start smiling at me I always smile back. Sometimes the parent is friendly. Other times they look at you like you are a creep. I love kids. I would risk my life to save a strangers kid. You have to be so careful though. I won't even give my kids friend a ride home unless my kid is along.

 

[redhen]

Quote:
Ahhh....but that's just your perception...

From our perspective, and probably everybody else who saw it at Chuck-e-Cheese, you are the hero....

I'll second that

Good job Boyd. Who knows you may be the only man that has shown that little man any love lately. I think it was nice.

 

[debilorrah]

Quote:
the weird thing for me, is I hear you look like so and so... And I hear it quite a bit. How many fat hillbillies with straw hats, bibs n harley boots you see around? I thought I was original enough to ensure uniqueness.

EVERYONE thinks they know me. Older people, it Bernadette Peters, younger folks, I am Drop Dead Diva and you started that one!

 

[Laurajean]

Quote:
The 'mistaking a stranger for Daddy' part of your story reminded me of this: When I was growing up my mother always told this story. It was like her 'party story' that she would tell whenever this type of topic came up. The story is that when my brother was about 5, they were in the checkout line at a grocery store. My brother saw the man in front of them in line and the man had a blue mechanics' uniform on like his own father wore daily. Recognizing only the clothes, and being so little, he couldn't see the mans' face and reached for him and said "Daddy!", wanting to be picked up. All the women in line stared at my mother and my mother was completely mortified when the man, who happened to be black, turned around and looked at my brother. Boyd, you mentioned times changing. Well I guess so, because for many years I didn't understand that story. I was like "So what? He recognized the mechanic uniform, I don't get it..." This happened in the mid 60's, before I was born, and so I literally didn't even get that the butt of the story was that the man was black and that THAT was the big deal. So, yeah, times aren't what they used to be, but in some ways at least things are better.

Oh, and my mother refused to get those darn fruit roll-ups INSISTING that if God wanted fruit on cellophane, he would have created fruit-roll-up trees.

Amazing how she only got religious when it came to saying no on things....

 

[Boyd]

Quote:
the weird thing for me, is I hear you look like so and so... And I hear it quite a bit. How many fat hillbillies with straw hats, bibs n harley boots you see around? I thought I was original enough to ensure uniqueness.

EVERYONE thinks they know me. Older people, it Bernadette Peters, younger folks, I am Drop Dead Diva and you started that one!

Moi?

 

[welsummerchicks]

Boyd if you are out in a public place like a play area at a restaurant and a kid reaches for you I don't know what else you would do. Too, if you are at that place with your own little kids I don't know anyone that would misinterpret that.

I was thinking when I read the story that the reason for the woman's embarrassment was just that the child called you daddy and asked if you were going home with them tonight. Embarrassed at what people would think of her. Not anything else.

I don't think it's right for anyone to assume anything about the mother. Kids say odd things sometimes that they hear on TV and it probably doesn't mean anything. She could be divorced or a single mom, but it's not really anyone's business to judge her, even if judging people has become the national passtime.

As far as danger to children from strangers in public places, that is the very very rare case. Usually it is someone the family is familiar with and not in public places with lots of people around. And no one should ever assume it will look like the adult is initiating it - that's a big, big mistake.

 

[EweSheep]

Well I had gotten to know you Boyd on here that I could trust you with our six year old daughter without batting an eye.

However if I didn't, I would have thought you would be a creep if you didnt have kids around you and I would be eyeballing you a little more closer before I would clobber you.

You are alot like my hubby who LOVES kids but he got into trouble a few times with their mommas, even with my presence, to leave their kids alone or the moms yanking on the kids away from him. When a kids ask for a hug, surely he or I would have given it to them but not to pick them up. We would get down to their level and ask them where their parents are and sometimes they do not know where, so my hubby would have to take a kid or kids to a police officer and let the officer know that the kid is lost.

I think alot of people do not want to assist a kid in trouble because overprotective mommas might be nearby and she probably would have literally tear their eyes out.