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Unsupervised9.19.98
Listening out the back door, you can hear the emergency vehicles coming from all parts of the city to arrive at the construction site of the new sports arena next to the superdome, part of which just collapsed. Construction workers hurt, unknown.
And thirty minutes later the topdrop of fast moving puffy whites against bright blue sunshine has turned angry black again, with wind and rain.
And we've been told to anticipate the worst, so that's what we do.
Sometimes we adults conspire to be thoroughly disgusted with certain children all at once, a blast of dissatisfaction--bad boy, bad boy, what we gonna do. There's too many unsupervised children running around here, way too many, an unacceptable many.
Mama D came over yesterday to tell me Shelton's school (McDonough 28) called and say he kicked out for touching a girl's butt and he know he ain't supposed to do that and I find myself nodding contritely as she scolds me in Shelton's place, replaying her words to me--"You know you can't just go around grabbing a girls' butt, it's not right and they won't put up with it at the school." I feel pretty bad by the time she's done and I didn't even get to touch no butt, dammit.
But I agree with her and sympathize with how difficult it must be for her to have those children misbehaving around her all the time instead of just the part time that I spend with them, and yes, Shelton will have to learn he pissin' off too many people too much of the time, and Fermin too, and even Jacque steps from his good boy role today by walking away from me when I tell him it's time to leave the bayou and go home. Hunter can stay if he wants but Jacque is a part timer at Mama D's and they tricked me down here by saying Mama D say they can't fish down there unless they with an adult. It had crossed my mind while driving the seven blocks there that--"ya'll didn't trick me down here just because ya'll too lazy to walk, did you?" No Indeed, they assured me. So anyway Jacque, I'm not that good at this, and in case you haven't noticed, I'm really not that fond of kids in general, and I'm not going to make a scene on the Dumaine bridge over this, so, bye bye, stay dry.
A little later when the sky gets prematurely black Mandy asks me where I left him and I tell her, and offer the advice, "let him get wet," but she ignores me and goes out to do what's right. I'll say this--them children are lucky Mandy got over being disgusted with them because right now she the only friend they got..