Newspaper Page Text
Friday, February 15,2013
Tribune & Georgian
5A
Not going gently into that good night
N o more diapers. No
more daycare. No
more sippy cups.
No more taking extra
pants wherever we go (except
for me — occasionally).
My, how things have
changed in just a few years of
parenting.
But as my children have
gotten older — the youngest
now being in second grade
—some things, well, they
haven’t changed at all.
“Time for bed, guys,” I say
at the same time every night.
“Huh?”
“What?”
Or just a blank stare, as if I
have suggested something
they have never heard of,
much less the previous night
at the very same time. And,
for that matter, every night at
roughly the same time for
Len Robbins
Opinion
every evening of their young
lives.
Bed? What’s this bed you
speak of? I’ve never heard of
it.
Those aren’t their words
vocalized, but rather the im
plied message of their body
language.
Just like when they were 2
and 5 years old, the 8- and
11-year-old brothers take
shifts in dragging out the in
evitable.
“All right, time to brush
your teeth and get in bed.”
“Brush my teeth? Why do
I have to brush my teeth?,”
one asks, while the other
starts a project of some sort.
“For the same reasons I ex
plained last night,” I respond,
and the night before, and the
night before.
“And after he’s done,
you’re next,” I say to the
other one.
“As soon as I finish this,”
which is what he just started
moments ago, on cue.
Meanwhile, the one I
dragged (literally) to the
bathroom to brush his teeth
has somehow escaped and is
downstairs eating ice cream.
When I get him back up
stairs and in the bathroom,
supervising him brushing his
teeth like a prison warden,
his brother has creeped out
side to “find something” in
my car. After I tuck his
brother in bed, I apprehend
his cohort, coming back up
stairs, only to find his brother
wrestling with the dog in the
hallway.
If one of them is in a bed,
the other is up, coming up
with some creative excuse of
why he can’t be in slumber.
“I’ve got to go to the bath
room.”
“I’m hungry.”
“My back hurts.”
“I’m too scared to go to
sleep.”
“I can’t go to bed. I’m
doing my push-ups.”
“I forgot to do my home
work.”
“I have a science project
where I have to watch the
moon until it goes away.”
“My teacher said I have to
watch the ending of‘Dodge-
ball: A True Underdog
Story.’”
“I’m drawing a picture of a
shark fighting Jason Bourne.”
This exercise goes on until
the younger one just col
lapses from exhaustion and
goes to sleep wherever he is
— usually lying on his bed
room floor, wearing a foot
ball helmet.
Despite the fact that
they’ve gone to bed every
night of their lives, my boys
seem to be under the delu
sion that tonight will be dif
ferent. Their mother or I
won’t prompt them to brush
their teeth and get in bed.
We won’t turn off the
lights and TVs. Tonight, they
honestly think we will allow
them to stay up all night.
Or this is just a grand
scheme to drive us to insan
ity. Probably the latter.
Occasionally, like when
one of them has the flu, there
won’t be a struggle to get
them in bed each night. But,
unfortunately, they are too
healthy for that to happen
often. Morning brings the
same deja vu all over again.
“Time to get up,” I bellow
cheerfully (sometimes).
Get up. What’s this getting
up you speak of? I’ve never
heard of it.
Len Robbins is a regular Friday
columnist in the Tribune & Geor
gian.
Letters
from page 4A
sign is their erratic writing, a
loss of health due to no exer
cise or activity. In every as
pect of life at home or
shopping, their phone never
leaves their hand. Brain
washing affects us many
ways.
Turn technology and
stressful TV news off at
night and get your rest.
The sedentary lifestyle
with no diversity initiates
memory loss. It is sad to see
no smile, expression or en
thusiasm in their life. If ill,
one needs self-esteem to
help one recover. Start your
day with a scripture, Tribune
& Georgian, crossword or
write a card to stimulate the
brain, penmanship and
spelling.
Elders need calcium for
mind support, bones and rest
in the p.m. only. An apple
with the peeling — pectin —
removes metal toxins off the
brain. Toxins come from
pain killers, deodorants, alu
minum cookware and cans.
Time cards in the 1970s
were a mind control, if late
approval needed.
I put a spot of masking
tape over minute, put on
watch face, until the top of
the hour, putting tape over
hour time getting zero
minute, with no stress. In my
youth, a friend invited me to
the dog-racing track. I got
popcorn and went outside to
watch alcoholics and smok
ers who were controlled by
the pied piper. They thought
the race program was de
signed for them. This was
Sodom and Gomorrah. I
looked at Friday’s race pro
gram months later. I saw a
discrepancy and played a
long shot first. I won four
figures. I did not return; I
could see brain washing.
Companies say, “Go
green.” They mean money.
Do you really think they care
about the environment, its
reducing clerical payroll?
The 1950s men used to
brainwash boys to disrespect
women. I could see through
the person being invalid and
negative. We were taught
there was only one good eth
nic person, Ms. Annie-
Housekeeper or Mr. Fred
the yardman in the 1940s
through the 1960s. A gener
ation was brainwashed to be
lieve this untruth.
The influence of strong
Hebrew and AME women
opened my eyes. The quality
of people were honorable in
all hard working areas. Peo
ple changed when they
moved to isolated areas of no
communication.
Midwives, caregivers and
nurses taught me all the
healing remedies. Women
today do not make positive
changes. I know your health
pattern. Women need 20
minutes of sun to activate vi
tamin D in their body for
their skin and hair. For lack
of sun, a B-complex vitamin
is needed for the hair. Exer
cise for women gets oxygen
back in the bloodstream and
helps them get relief through
monthly discomfort and
menopause.
Calcium is needed three
times a day during a difficult
period. To avoid hot flashes,
no spices, hot meals, reduce
caffeine, be cool.
For bladder issues after
childbirth, women need 64
ounces of water, juice or hot
green tea (which reduces in
flammation), but no dark dye
drink.
Two more “hot” winters,
May 16 - Sept. 21, will be
high heat. Get out now and
exercise. Put apple cider
vinegar on clothing with
lemon grass and eucalyptus
oil for pests. The vinegar
odor does not linger.
Stop and smell the roses.
Living a real life has its re
wards.
J. Pasteur Mach
St. Marys
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Re-printed from the June 2, 1977, edition of The Southeast Georgian.
Proudly Serving & Supporting
Camden County!
St. Marys Railroad, LLC
A BOATRIGHT COMPANY
P.O. Box 43889 • Birmingham, AL 35243 • 1.800.873.2020
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Email to: editorl @tds.net • Fax to: (912) 882-6519
Mail to: P.O. Box 6960, St. Marys, GA 31558
Drop off: 206 Osborne St., St. Marys
Building Permits Issued
Owner: Wilco Hess LLC; Kingsland, GA 31548
Location/Description of Work: 2607 Scrubby Bluff Rd; Add to Comm Bldg
Amount: $20,000
Owner: Blue Haven Pools & Spas, Jacksonville, FL
Location/Description of Work: 204 Serpentine Dr; Winding River;
New Pool
Amount: $24,900
Owner: WH Gross Construction, Inc.; Kingsland, GA 31548
Location/Description of Work: 50 Cedar Hill Dr; Osprey Cove; 1,834 SQ FT,
New Residence
Amount: $170,000
Owner: Westco General Contracting LLC; Kingsland, GA 31548
Location/Descriptioni of Work: 201 Edgewater Dr.; Winding River; Renovation due to Fire
Amount: $200,000
Owner: GA Fiberglass Pools Builder; Ray City, GA 31645
Location/Decription of Work: 106 Longwood Rd; Shadowlawn; New Pool
Amount: $0
New Business Licenses
Justice Heat & Air • 3208 Old Pelham Road, Camilla, GA 31730 • 229-294-5195
blhbj @hotmail.com
City Electric Supply • 1965 Commerce Drive, Kingsland, GA 31548 • 912-576-2200
stmary s0053 @ CES .us .net
Your Woodman Tree Service • 297 Cox Road, Kingsland, GA 31548 • 912-552-8444
Building Air Services INC • 6785 114th Avenue, Largo, FL 33773 • 727-744-9350
steveb @ bas.services.com
Par Church Builders INC • 137 College Street. Macon, GA 31201 • 478-741-0109
aeb.82@yahoo.com
Diamonds Electric Signs • 230 Power Court #150, Sanford, FL 32771 • diamondbouks@bellsouth.net
RREMC, LLC BDA Denny’s #8102 • 1800 Old Okeechobee Road.
West Palm Beach, FL 33409 • 561-684-2101 • jmetz@rremc.com
Golden Rule Electric • 2946 Calvery Church Road, Wrightsville, GA
31096*478-290-6466
Future Computer Systems Inc • Jacksonville, FL • 641-684-1100
The Resurfacing Company Inc • Jacksonville, FL • 904-333-9756
Coastal Electric Company of FL • Jacksonville, FL • 904-645-0026
Sailaway Management Inc • 107 Burgee Place, St. Marys, GA 31558
912-882-1566
Paradigm Solar LLC • 122 B Osborne St, St. Marys, GA 31558
904-321-7101
Tax Service of America Inc • 6586 GA Hwy 40 E B4,
St. Marys, GA 31558 • 407-691-0004
HMJ • 346 Brooklet Circle, St. Marys, GA 31558 • 352-359-5462
TopCor Services LLC • 1201 Osborne Rd., St. Marys, GA 31558
225-753-7067
Seabags • 685 Kingsbay Rd., St. Marys. GA 31558 • 912-882-7450
Enjoy Painting Services • 107 Snug Harbor. St. Marys, GA 31558 • 312-322-3804
Brant Creek LLC • 4450 GA Hwy 40 East, St. Marys. GA 31558 • 912-882-5678
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