If you can't share, get the hell out of the park!

One of the things I liked about hanging out at a playground in LA was the fact that if your kid's toys were out for all to see, they were up for grabs to share with others. That is, unless the owner (kid) was playing with them. (Naturally) Needless to say that when I arrived in the Boston area and hung out at parks, I was shocked to find parents "sharking" their children's toys. It wasn't the children that had a problem sharing, it was the damn parents. I was like WTF? My son would walk over to a toy that was literally abandoned, and as he neared his new found object, some crunchy mama would be running over trying not to trip over herself saying, "hey that's so and so's toy/bike/scooter". Please people, let your child do the talking, would ya?

So why am I venting about this? Because a short time ago, I was taking a stroll with my dear friend Coby and our kids and there in the distance was ultimate no share, sharking, sun shines out of my child's ass mommy and her friend, freaking out for the following. Here's the scene...

We were walking across a huge soccer field, heading over to the playground, when we noticed this HUGE pink blob. As we moved a bit closer, we saw Coby's daughter make a B line for this blob. It was a major toy. A toy to end all toys! It was a toy on crack. It was...one of those battery operated kiddie size cars! Not just any car though, it was a BARBIE POWER WHEELS PINK JEEP WRANGLER! Now, why anyone would get one of these for their kid is beyond me. Isn't this generation of parents freaking out about our kids growing up way too fast? But who am I to judge, we are considering getting our 5 year old a friggin itouch for Christmaka. (but he has mastered one at 5 years old, so what the hell) Anyway, as Coby's daughter began to reach out and touch this mega toy we hear, "ummm, excuse me little girl! That's my daughter's brand new Barbie Jeep. She doesn't share it with anyone so please don't touch it"! Meanwhile, the kid was clear across the park playing in the sand with her buddy. She could have cared less who was playing her car. What the hell is wrong with people? Ugh.

I could see Coby's blood starting to boil. Now, realize this...Coby is a tall woman. Me, I'm 5 feet so she is intimidating just to look at. She is tall, thin and Dutch. She takes shit from no one. Not to mention that she had JUST had her third kid like 3 weeks before, it was like a 100 degrees out, and she is nursing. So she's hormonal and really sweaty! She of course defends her kid by saying things like, "Hey, don't talk to my kid like that, who do you think you are...blah blah blah". The mom tried to defend herself but Coby wasn't having any of it. Now by this time, there are about 7 other kids, that came out of nowhere to oogle the car as well. The mom got scared, gather her things, her little girl and ran out.

Now, what amazed me about myself was that I didn't think of what I wanted to say until after she took off. What the hell was wrong with me? Normally, you can't shut me up, but this time I was speechless. But the minute she left the park, I say, "Shit, don't you know bringing in a toy like that anywhere where there are kids is like bringing Ronald McDonnald, Santa, the Easter Bunny and a truck full of candy. Kids are gonna touch it. What the hell did she expect?" But I said nothing, until it was too late.

I'm loosing my game. Sigh.