The kids just got back from camp. "Kit" got home yesterday. "Lets have a treat", I think.
"How about vegetarian corn dogs and sweet potatoe fries for dinner", I ask.
"Mom! I ate that kind of junk all week at camp" she replied, clearly rejecting the idea.
She ate a salad for dinner.
Today "the boy" returned from camp. Not learning my lesson from last night, I asked "Would you like sloppy joes and some sweet potatoe fries for dinner?"
"Yuk!" he exclaimed. "We had that kind of food at camp all week."
What did he want for dinner? A salad.
So, the moral of the story is. . . if you want your kids to eat more vegetables, send them to camp.
* * * *
On another note. . .if we went to more cocktail parties, it would be a popular topic of conversation. But, we don't. So, here it is. . .
We are a family where both parents work for the State of California. We are now furloughed 3 days a month, each. This means a reduction in pay of about 15% per month, each.
We're lucky. We have no car payments. We buy our clothes at thrift stores, and "being thrifty" is our hobby. Our only debt is our house payment.
Some of my staff are in much worse situations, because they don't make as much money. The workload hasn't changed, so if you don't go to work voluntarily on the furlough days, the extra work stresses you out. Personally, I don't work for the paycheck, so I'm trying not to focus on it, or I'd be depressed.
"The Dad" works at an office that completely shuts down on 3 fridays a month, now. They lock up the building, and even the parking lot! So, in one way, its nice to have some extra time off. However, his department may soon be turning away budget stimulus projects, because the reduction in staff time is preventing them from being able to complete the projects.
On top of it, we are only taking pay reductions. Our benefits (the state's "burden") are still in full effect. Nice for us, but that really doesn't save much!
Its a bizarre situation. And, the new "Fudget" means this isn't the last we'll hear of it.
