What's up?

Every time the big kid calls, we start the conversation with "what's up?" or "zup?" I generally ask him how is feeling and then we move on to what the latest disaster/trial/tribulation that is on his mind. Currently, he is walking to his meeting with his partner on a project, a red-shirted field hockey player. According to Buddy, she is nice, but not a committed student. Hmmm. Anyway, he claims that he did more work on the project. My response was that he continues to carry the team and he should look at it as a privilege. Keep in mind that on any team or with any group work, someone on the team does most of the work and he should get used to it. Life is built that way. It is not fair. If life was fair, the Phillies would be in the World Series now.

Speaking of not fair.... players were cut yesterday and some are handling it better than others. Buddy's one friend was at the apartment yesterday and is taking it in stride even though he did not see it coming. Others are completely devastated...and so it goes. It is a business and the coaches want to keep their jobs. If the team does not perform and make a name for itself, they lose their jobs. It can be a cut throat business. Again, it is division 1 baseball and not Legion try-outs. The stakes are higher and therefore the rules of etiquette change. It is survival of the fittest and so it goes...goes...goes...gone...

On another note, when I spoke with Buddy the other night, he asked me to edit one of his papers. After I sent it back to him with minimal changes (he did a good job), I asked him if he received it through his email. As he tried to retrieve the paper, he noted that the Internet was not working and there must be an outage or short in their service. After calling the cable company, it seems that someone (Buddy) did not pay the cable bill. Here is his explanation:

"I thought that the cable bill was debited out of my account through the credit card (my card)." So, when the bill came, the guys put the envelopes (4 notices) on top of the refrigerator. Since he does not eat in the apartment, he did not see the notices and therefore because he did not pay the bill, cable was shut off. Another life lesson learned by a group of guys who know it all. Losing their cable was probably devastating since they could not check their classes, emails, facebook, and internet.

With that,I sit back and smile. There is nothing that I can say or do that can prepare him for all of the situations that he will encounter. Living in an apartment is more than moving furniture in and paying rent. There are utilities and cable, maintenance, and responsibilities that the guys do not have when they live rent-free at home. They move from the shelter of their fully equipped home bedrooms to a situation in which they have to pay attention to every detail. BP mom is not there to read the bills, look at mail, and lock the doors. They are on their own to clean and be responsible. By the way, the last time I was on campus, I was asked not to enter the apartment since he thought that I would be totally grossed out. Since I have a queasy stomach by nature, I gladly complied. I can only imagine the filth that they are living in since I collected his gear from his freshman dorm room. Some of the clothes, shoes and boxes are still in the garage with a note that they are quarantined until they pass Board of Health safety standards.

Have a good day!