Thursday, February 22, 2007

I just gotta know...

I think perhaps my kids have some serious visual limitation. Or maybe they somehow split their existence between this universe and some alternate time/space location. I mean, they get pretty decent grades, they make friends, they seem to have a variety of interests.

But...and here is where I'm worried....they don't seem to be able to see their rooms.

Oh, I don't mean they can't find their rooms. They locate them without any problem. They sleep in there. The listen to music. They read.

But they don't SEE!

For example, today I opened the door to Son16's room and the door would not push all the way open. I stretched my neck to look around behind the door. And suddenly, a mystery was solved. Now I know why he has not had many clothes in the laundry the past couple of weeks. They were behind the door. Which apparently, he could not see.

Daughter13, a person you would find charming if you met her out in public, does not seem to have the capacity to see that many of her books are near the bookshelf, not actually on the bookshelf.

I did mention today, in a most gentle and loving parental voice, something along the lines of "are you guys ever gonna clean your rooms...or should I just consider everything on the floor to be trash and throw it all away?" They both responded by rolling their eyes so far back in their heads that I'm sure some sort of ocular damage resulted.

So maybe it is a vision thing. Or some altered form of existence. Or something else that I just don't know about. But I'm worried. As a good parent, I need to try to get them back in touch with this universe. To help them see just how their rooms look.

I wonder if their vision would improve if I were holding on to their DS games???

33 comments:

Michelle said...

I am so glad that it's not just my 15 and 13 yr olds who cant' see their rooms. lol I said that one day over their break this week they were gonna clean heir rooms.....well, tomorrow is Friday...ya think it will happen?. Hmmmm....maybe holding those video games/computer stuff might help here as well!

PS: You win the position of personal hnt photographer....lol Report for duty next wednesday evening!! lol

OhTheJoys said...

Remember when "dives" were cool when we were younger?

No?

Yeah.

Me neither.

I am old.

Rick said...

It's been a while, but I recall a leaf blower being fairly effective at locating floors. Unless you have a snow-blower. That works even better.

Melody said...

Hehe... I like rick's idea of the leaf blower!!

Liv said...

We've been discussing eyesight issues in my house today as in the following encounter:

me: pick up your Thomas train in the sunroom

D: where?

me: the sunroom

D: (looks all around) Where?

me: seriously, right in front of you.

D: (sing song) I don't see it

me: for the love of God, it's right in front of you.

---this went on and on---

bang head on wall repeatedly!

awareness said...

geeeeee......my daughter (13) has the same visual issues. She also suffers from dropsy. drives me batty.

It's a good thing I love her unconditionally or she'd be out on her butt!! :)

Teena in Toronto said...

I think maybe my husband, Gord, lives at your place too. He tends to be a bit of a slob ... and he's 52!!!

ZZZZZZZ said...

you'd have a heart attack if you saw my room.... I've been cleaning it since Christmas... as soon as one section is done I mess up another section.

y.Wendy.y said...

Yup - hold onto the DS - believe me it sharpens up their sight in no time.

I have become ogre Mummy this week....they're not allowed into bed until their floor is clear .....and swept. Yup - swept. They think I am wicked and cruel, of course. But heavens....the threat of not seeing their DS for a week works wonders!

Big Brother said...

Ah the messy room syndrome... I think that it is a universal constant, like the speed of light or Pi. My son's room has gone beyond messy, he has brought messiness to an art form.
I console myself with the thought that someday they'll have adolescent children also. ;o)

Jazz said...

My mom did that once. Took everything that was lying around in my room and put it in a trash bag outside. I'm lucky it wasn't trash day...

And Em? I'll bet you were the same at their age. :-p

Em said...

Thank goodness it isn't just my kids! LOL

Chelle - you can't imagine how much fun it would be taking those photos! Thanks for the opportunity. :)

Rick - love the snow blower idea!

Wendz - they SWEEP?!?! You are my parenting idol!

Sheila - your room would not bother me at all cause I don't have to dig through it to find your clothes! LOL

Jazz - believe it or not, I was the neatest kid ever. I'm 50 years old and still have some of my childhood toys cause I put them away so carefully after each use. Yeah, I know, my wife assures me I'm a freak.

Anonymous said...

Amazing! Your kids can't see and my kids can't hear. I'll call them once, twice, three times before they acknowledge me. I wonder if it's the flouride in the water.

Jingo said...

If you clean up a room, it loses its character!

That's my excuse...

Redneck Mommy said...

Dude, hold onto those DS thingies. I got a hold of my kids, and the controllers to their playstation thingy and held them hostage.

I had the beds made, the books and toys put away, the floors swept and best of all...they got on their hands and knees and washed their floors!!!!

And I made them smile while they worked too. NO whining allowed.

The price of parenting. I love being wicked.

thethinker said...

If you think clothes behind doors and books not place on bookshelves are bad, you should take a visit to my room.

Nothing is where it should be. No amount of organizing devices (i.e. laundry hamper, storage bins, etc.) are able to make me put everything in its place.

So, yeah, I can't see.

Unknown said...

Its not so much a matter of blindness....its really more of SELECTIVE blindness. My guess is that their eyes will work just fine when it comes to spotting some cold hard cash, or an advertisement for a new video game, etc....hahaha. It goes with the age, I'm afraid.

Michael K. Althouse said...

Just stopped by to say Michele sent me, but I gotta run. I'll be beack to read your post, it's only right.

Mike

Anonymous said...

Tell them that you will post a picture of their messy rooms on the internet.

I for one would love to see them...just to, you know...compare them to my kids rooms. You could have a contest LOL

Redroach said...

Teenagers.
You can't live with them and you can't live with their dead bodies in the trunk.

At least I have 11 years till mine gets there.

Tv

Kati said...

ROFLMBO!!!!! Between you & Whim today... You're summing them up perfectly!!!!!

Ok, here's an idea???? Does either of them have a My-Space space??? Or, do YOU have a spot on MySpace??? Or even You-Tube for this.... If so, either take pictures, or better yet video tape it, then put it on YouTube or My Space, and let them know that you're doing it. Tell them the footage/photos will come down as soon as their rooms are clean. And label the rooms scrupulously, so that their friends only have to search their names on MySpace, to find pictures/footage of their trashed rooms.

*shrug* Just a thought. *wicked grin*

Anonymous said...

Hi Em, I love your blog. I'll be back later to read more, but I've to fling a few stones across the rubicon. :)

CS said...

It's hormonal, I'm sure of it. Something just happens in adolescence that precludes neatness. I was exactly the same way and my mother would depsiar when she looked into my room. I thought it was perfect.

Kati said...

Hey Em!!! I posted a couple of pics on my blog, just for you!!!! ;) Proof that you're NOT the only one with children that suffer from subjective blindness. (Or, for that matter, the only parent that wishes we could enjoy the benefits of the same subjective blindness.)

Unknown said...

Wow. That sounds exactly like me. Your kids, that is. I had a lot of clothing on my floor as a kid. And other stuff.

Miao 妙 said...

I wonder if their vision would improve if I were holding on to their DS games???

It may help. Either that or they rebel against you.

I am a teenager, and sometimes my mum loves to nag about how messy my room is as well. ><

Baron Ectar said...

what amazes me is they cant see the rooms - but they know EXACTLY where everything is in them - and they seem to lose their hearing as well when I speak to them about the unseen things in their lives - oh and after they get their own jobs and money they dont care about the little allowance that I was once able to bribe them with once to see the room!

Elle said...

LMAO!! Ok I don't have that problem in bedrooms yet, but the play room looks like Fisher Price exploded in it!! They have no pride in keeping their toys neat!! I'm sure this is where it begins though.

tkkerouac said...

Thanks for stopping by
I gave up with getting them to clean the rooms
just kept the door shut
and focused on the big things

velvet said...

My 6 year old is displaying early signs of this selective vision. It's frustrating.

Hmmm, having everything on the floor mysteriously "disappear" to some undisclosed location if it's not put in its proper place... would that work? Other than that, yes, the DS withholding may prove to be terribly effective.

-velvet

Em said...

Reading all these comments surely make me smile. And it is nice to know I'm not alone!

Joshua said...

Yeah, I just can't wait 'till I have kids of my own.

So for I got no problems with other peoples kids, as long as babies are past the whole boggle head deal.

Joshua said...

Oh yeah. I'm 24 and I still have selective vision.

so I don't think they will grow out of it ;)