The newest annoyance in children's footwear (1 Viewer)

[Greg_S_H]

I'm just like you on the "small" stuff. I was almost run down by a kid with those skate shoes, and I didn't even know what they were. "How is this kid floating across the pavement, about to run into me?" Parents don't discipline any more, so kids don't respect any adult. I hear my dogs out barking, so I go to get them. I'm standing right there, and the kids are going, "WOOF! WOOF!," getting the dogs riled up. They would have kept it up until I said, "Do NOT agitate my dogs." They looked as stunned as if I had slapped them in the face. Someone telling them what to do? Unheard of.

 

[Bryan X]

And Silica. Don't forget we can discuss Silica. It doesn't get any bigger than that.

 

[MarkHastings]

It's a good thing I love silica.

 

[Holadem]

Sorry Mark, gotta agree with Claudia here, that level of pettiness cannot possibly be a healthy way to be... Find an outlet, join a boxing class or something. Or start drinking.

--
H

 

[MarkHastings]

How is it petty to not want a kid to hurt me while I'm shopping at a store? How is it petty to want to see a kid not get hurt (in a parking lot)? How is it petty to not want a waitress to trip over a child while carrying a tray of food?

I've said that I don't mind these shoes, I just think there are appropriate and non-appropriate places to use them. It seems like parents aren't teaching these kids where it is appropriate to be rolling on these wheels.

Heavy traffic parking lots, crowded grocery/department stores, and restaurants are not appropriate places to be roller skating.


p.s. and speaking of a non-healthy way of living, what if I DID trip over that kid (while he was rolling around Wal-Mart) and threw out my back? The kid FLEW past me as I came around the corner. If I hadn't stopped suddenly or had gotten there a second sooner, I probably would have fallen over him. I can't afford to have my back blow out because some kid is allowed to fly (on wheels) through the store.

 

[Holadem]

OK OK I will elaborate a bit.

The small stuff does need tending to as well. There is probably someone out there who feels his purpose in life is to design the perfect door knob. Or to eliminate non-OAR releases forever. The world needs these people as well, each such trivial obsession potentially results in an incremental quality of life improvement, the total sum of which makes the world a better place. So yes, the small stuff matters, and someone needs to deal with it so the rest of us can go one with our lives. But when one person is constantly annoyed by what seems to be ALL the small stuff (which they cannot possibly fix, not that they are even trying), then there is cause for concern as expressed above.

--
H

 

[MarkHastings]

But your advice is to find an outlet. That's what I did here. I express my anger on things and I feel better - No need to do anything harmful to myself. That's surely better than what most people would do. I know you were only joking, but most people WOULD start drinking, smoking, or doing drugs, etc.

The reason these little things annoy me so much is because I think I do lead a different life than others. It's based on reason, thought and good judgement, which (apparently) seem to be lost on most people.

If you guys knew me in person, I'd be acting much differently. I really only vent my anger on the internet. In my every day life, I am pretty "altogether". I don't mean to brag (OK, yes I do ) but a lot of people have complimented me on how well I actually do run my life. I haven't made any real bad mistakes and all of my decisions usually end up right...well, except for women, but that will change the next time. People are also jealous of my lifestyle. That's mainly because I've made good decisions.

Hmmmm, maybe I should start my own site like Maddox and tell people how cool I am and how much everyone else sucks. LOL That's be great!


p.s. I often forget how my posts actually read. I am usually smiling even when I'm typing these 'anger' posts. And no, not an evil smile...I tend to crack myself up a lot, even when I'm angry. LOL

 

[ChristopherG]

Too late, too many of us here know the real truth, I keed, I keed!

So really Mark do you honestly think that kids listen to everything their parent's tell them? You were a kid right?

Man, everytime I see some kid sailing by on those things, the only thing I can think of is "damn, there's another thing I didn't get to do". Seriously, that list keeps getting bigger to include everything from Big Wheels (yeah after my time - old as dirt), to the little motorized cars to Heelys to the next cool thing that kids will get to do. I just watch them and feel more jealous than anything else...

 

[MarkHastings]

No, but let me tell you, if I ever bumped into someone in the store, I would have had my ASS handed to me by my parents....hell, if I even so much as started to wheel around, I'd get yelled at. In fact, I was taught enough respect early on, that even if I did have those shoes, I would have known better than to do it in a crowded store.

and I know you probably won't believe this, but my mom said she was constantly complimented on how well behaved and considerate my brother and I were...even when we were no more than 2 years old.

We were taught (early on) to be mindful and respectful of others. Are my parents some mystical magicians that were able to magically teach us this? Hardly.

So what's the problem today?? "Kids will be kids" is no excuse to give up in trying to teach a child. That's such a cop-out and a lame excuse that everyone seems to gravitate toward. No wonder why there are so many out of control kids these days. It's just one excuse after another. No wonder why I'm angry People give up WAY too easily. :frowning:

 

[ChristopherG]

so, clearly, you don't have any kids...?

And don't go all "just because I don't have any doesn't mean I can't have an opinion" on me. Of course you can have an opinion. It's just that, if you have kids it does alter your "what irritates me factor".

 

[Bryan X]

I have kids and I feel the same way as Mark does.

 

[ChristopherG]

Well, difference is what makes live interesting isn't it? I am by no means a "let my kids run wild" parent, in fact I am constantly complimented on my kids manners. I am just saying that I personally don't get bothered as much by things like this as I used to. And I definitely used to.

 

[Todd Hochard]

How many of these things have personally happened in your presence? The above results, that is?

You could die in a car accident on the way to work. In fact, you could conceivably run into and kill someone on this board on the way to work. Therefore, you should probably stop going to work.

 

[andrew markworthy]

FWIW, there are moves afoot to ban these shoes in the UK, after several kids have skated into the paths of oncoming cars with inevitable consequences. :frowning:

I believe that kids should have fun and that in many ways we are way too repressive and protective these days. However, respect and consideration for others aren't silly outmoded values. It's too easy to cause accidents (not to mention annoyance) in crowded places or on busy streets. Common sense should tell us that and a couple of decades ago it probably would have. Now unless someone legislates for it, nobody seems to pay any attention.

 

[MarkHastings]

and that there is the crux of the situation. Parents are used to it because they've accepted the fact that they have given up their freedom of peace. As one without kids, I am sick of having to 'accept' this behavior.

I am very willing to put up with "kids will be kids" actions, but there are actions that shouldn't be so careless lumped into this. I feel that some parents are so accustomed to rambunctious kids, that they no longer can tell the slight difference between "kids will be kids" actions and downright unacceptable behavior.

As andrew (and others) have mentioned, these kids are using these shoes in the parking lots, streetsm, and crowded stores. Parents are forgetting that these shoes are roller skates and not toys. Kids can get seriously hurt or seriously hurt others.

But, of course, since I don't have kids, I can't say anything because people view me as being unresonable :rolleyes, when that's not the case at all. This is a real issue that shouldn't be so carelessly ignored.

Geez, and people wonder why I'm always so upset? It's the fact that I can't discuss kid issues because I don't have kids. :frowning: I have never owned a gun, I don't have kids, and I've never had anyone close to me who is been murdered, but I do know that it's not a good idea to give a kid a gun.

 

[ChristopherG]

I did not mean to indicate that the fact you don't have kids means that those of us that do can infringe on you. Again, my point is that (in my case anyway) the responsibility of being a parent brings enough pressure that I do not get worked up about things like I used to. There's lots of new things to get worked up over.

 

[andrew markworthy]

Mark, believe me, I sympathise with this view, but with respect, this only applies to some parents. I have kids and they've been brought up to be quiet, polite and respectful when in public. I don't think we're especially unusual in this and we certainly don't have unusually angelic kids (though the idea of 'Stepford Kids' has its appealing side ). The problem as always lies with a sizeable rump of parents who for various reasons don't keep control of their kids adequately. The trouble is that for self-defining reasons, the quiet kids aren't noticed while the brats are.

If it's any consolation, a lot of parents are probably even more annoyed by badly behaved kids than childless people are. If nothing else it's because well-behaved kids and their parents get tarred with the same brush.

 

[ChristopherG]

Andrew - well said!

I should have probably tried to paint this picture a little bit more myself in my earlier responses.

 

[MarkHastings]

I agree. Why is it that I can't complain about uncontrollable kids without people assuming I'm talking about every kid?

I've seen kids with these roller shoes who aren't using them. I never bitched about them. I am only bitching about the ones who nearly slam into me in the store.

When I say "Parents should control their kids", I'm not saying that every child is out of control. Neither does that statement say that all parents have uncontrolable children. All it says is, when I see a child who is out of control, a parent should be responsible for controlling them. Face it, there are plenty of children who are out of control in public and there are plenty of kids that are under control because their parents are keeping them under control.

Like the woman who took the screming child out of the movie theater. I don't get mad at screaming kids, I get mad at parents who don't DO anything about screaming kids.

I don't get mad at kids who run around in crowded resturants, I get mad at parents who ALLOW their kids to run around in crowded restaurants.

etc. etc.

 

[MarkHastings]

Maybe not you, but it is clearly apparent that many have viewed my opinions as 'unreasonable'. :frowning: