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Relatable

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I have never been really close with my dad. It's not that I don't like him or have any hard feelings for him, he just has 8 kids and none of us are great at socializing. So it was strange this week to have a moment where I really felt like we related.

He is opening a restaurant this month. No, that's not his background. He's a great cook and all but his professional skills are more in the IT world. but he's an entrepreneur and has this partner he really gets along with and they are opening this brewery and restaurant in downtown Mesa.

We got to go to his media night and I got to see how excited he was as he showed us around and gave us the VIP treatment. I've been bugging him about his PR plan so he introduced me to their PR woman. turns out my dad's partner's wife volunteers where I work so I'm sure we'll work with them in the future on something to benefit the kids.

As the samplers of food started coming around we sat and we asked my dad about his youngest son, still living at home and going to college. Beyond getting good grades he's not doing much. He's not doing anything bad--just not taking advantage of all the good opportunities before him. And I had this moment of realizing--I know exactly how that feels.

I know how it feels to watch a child you love, who has so much potential, not reach it. Not want to reach it. Ignore your best advice and common sense.

I'm sure my sibling will be successful some day. It's just going to take him a little longer to get there, the rate he is going. I know J will find success some day too--just not some day soon.

He managed to get passing grades in all his classes this semester, which is a miracle, but I just got word from a teacher that she cannot pass him because he didn't show up for the final. He didn't go to school today.

I was woken up around 12:30 last night by the dog and noticed an alert on my phone. Someone had turned off the device we have that turns off the wifi at night. Meaning J had unplugged it so he could stay up late watching shows. At that moment he was in the shower. As soon as he came out I gave him a death glare, told him not to touch the Circle and went back to bed. My heart was pounding, I was so angry.

Here's what I saw: A kid stayed up late watching shows and taking long showers when he knew darn well he should have been in bed. In fact, he actively broke my rules by turning off the device meant to encourage him to follow the rules. The rules are there so he gets enough sleep so that he gets to school on time. The result is he did not get to school on time.
In his mind: The rule is stupid because he has trouble sleeping and wouldn't be able to sleep regardless of whether or not he was watching something. Today was going to be an easy day at school so he didn't need to get a ton of rest for it anyways. I can handle this. The result: He can't handle it.

I never felt like a rebellious teenager. I never felt like I knew everything. It's really strange seeing that stereotype come to life. It's weird being able to relate to others dealing with that stereotype in their kids--especially when that kid is my sibling. Teenagers are the worst.

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