Project: Nick

Frankie's almost ready to go to college. For a really long time, I've been trying to get him ready to grow up. It feels like he's done. Well, anyway, the influence that I can have on him is done. I'll have no control over what he is or is not doing at college, so I'm trying to let go as much as possible. (Like, for example, Frankie got a letter from Rowan University in the mail, detailing some of the plans they have prepared for the freshman when they move in. He asked me, "Do I really have to attend this stuff?" I was confused -- it all sounds fun! Of course you should attend! But no -- he's already been invited to some off campus party, and he'd rather do THAT. Yeah. Right. Do whatever, kid. Just DON'T do anything illegal, Be CAREFUL, and DON'T be mean to anyone. That's about all I can say.)

So, now that Frankie is on the launch pad and we are counting down to blast off, my thoughts are turning more and more to Project: NICK.

Last week, Nick was working Day Camp. It was his second week working it, and he didn't have Booth with him, so I guess he was more in charge; because Booth is a take-charge kind of guy, and when they worked together, I guess that Booth was probably the boss, and Nick was his back up/assistant.

Nick is interested in being a gym teacher when he grows up. I don't know if it's a good plan or not. I can certainly imagine him being a gym teacher, and having a good career. But -- and I know I've said this 100 times before -- it seems like every boy you talk to either wants to be a police officer or a gym teacher. It could definitely be a field that is flooded with applicants. I wish he reallllly, reallllly, reallllly wanted to be a plumber. Because THAT is a career I could see him making tons of money with, and being guaranteed a job. But, whatever. No glamour in plumbing.

So, in training to be a gym teacher, working day camp in the games area was a good idea. Plus, he's going to go back to coaching the little guys on the soccer team like he did last year. I'm going to enroll him in the high school's teacher apprentice program, too.

I asked Nick how he did with managing the little guys in the games; did they listen to him? Did they behave? Nick said yeah, they were aggravating but not bad. He said the kids kept pushing him, especially one particular kid. I asked him, "How did you get them to stop?" and he said,

"I asked the boy who was pushing me to put out his arm. He did, and I grabbed his arm with one hand, hoisted him onto my shoulders, spun him around and around, and then held him upside down by the ankles and shook him."

Oh. My.
"How could you do that? What did the kid say?" (Am I going to get a phone call from an angry parent?) (Are you crazy?)

"He loved it. Then all the other kids wanted turns."

(gulp.)

Ok, the kid is only 16. He's got a lot of time.

I went out with his boss last night, the director of the day camp, Sueanne. I asked her how Nick did. I imagine she didn't see the spinning around thing, but she said he did great. All the boys loved him, she said. She said she felt a little bad for him sometimes, because he was always being mobbed by groups of boys.

I wonder if they teach you at teacher's college, the appropriate way to handle those kinds of situations???