DSC_0664, a photo by jshannon331 on Flickr.
My kid got hit on at the park the other day.
We had just had a pleasant jaunt around the lake and were sitting calmly on a bench in the shade watching the ducks, when a group of three woman and their offspring snuggled in McClarens, sipping Earth's Best Apple Juice from juice box straws began eyeing us from their Pottery Barn blanket in the grass. They would titter back and forth, and then stop and stare at us, then repeat the cycle. Ellie didn't notice- the object of interest usually doesn't. We resumed our wildlife observations when I saw, out of the corner of my eye, two of the Moms toss half-eaten fruit salads from Whole Foods in the trash and head straight for us.
I've seen this kind of determination before. Usually in bars, concerts, social gatherings. We had been checked out and met with approval; they were now making advances. Two is necessary, of course. One to engage to object of interest- my daughter- while the wing-mama does her duty in finding out if my husband works on Wall Street, too. (Nothing to brag about currently, I longed to assure them).
The pursuer flattered my daughter, made her giggle, played with her fingers, and told her how beautiful she was. The wing-mama did her duty by asking me irrelevant questions, such as, how old she was, had she begun solids yet, does she sleep through the night?
Finally, both shared the high sign, and the pursuer asked if we cared to join them on their 400.00 blanket I would be reluctant to put on my bed for fear I'd spill something on it, let alone stick right in the grassy patch the dogwalkers seem to love letting their charges have their way with.
We politely declined, as we were headed home in a few minutes for nap time.
Funny. The more things change, the more things stay the same, eh?