(no subject)

[h_hollister]

Enter one fed-up crazy woman.

"So. Single mum. Used to it. Raising two boys, all has been well for the last twelve years."

She pulls a pack of Rothmans out of the back pocket of her jeans and lights up, a true sign that she's at her wits' end. She never smokes in public. Like....less so than she drinks in public, which is saying a hell of a lot.

"Except now puberty is hitting. Suddenly I'm getting hormones along with the sass. Suddenly my sweet little boys are turning into aggressive little men. Should I douse myself in testosterone to establish dominance? Or should I find a better outlet for my little hellions?"

This marks the first real question Hippolyta Hollister has asked in many, many years. Pay heed.

Comments

[slayers_desire]

This question interests April. Mostly because it won't be long before her own 'little boys' are turning into men.

"What are their interests? What kind of outlet would they enjoy?"

[gorogorogoro_chan]

The smell of nicotine wafting through the air lures another smoker. Majima already has his own cigarette lit and in hand. "Speakin' as a former shitty teenage boy, whatever ya do to keep 'em in line, ya gotta make 'em think it's their idea. Hit that age, and they start thinkin' they're grown-ass men already. Masters of their own fate."

[ixis]

"If the brats refuse to respect authority, evict them! Why put up with rebellion in your own home? A few nights on the streets should straighten out any ideas of continued disrespect. Also, you get some peace and quiet for awhile. A sound plan in many ways, if you ask me, and you did."

You can tell Ixis Naugus has never actually raised any children with an answer like that.

[chiron_survivor]

"Um... my aunt put my cousins in sports. She said that way they'd sweat out their hormones."

Adia is looking leaps and bounds better than she did at her drunken pity party all those months ago, but she's still a little intimidated by the other woman's beauty. She smiles shyly and stays out of smoke-blowing range.

"How do they like to express themselves? Art, journaling, anything like that?"

[sumarusfinest]

"Ugh. I wish there was a simple solution to that."

Katsuya remembers all too well the near daily fights he and his younger brother got into when Tatsuya was going through that. The elder Suou was barely out of it himself at the time and really, trying to raise a teenager alone at any age is just a nightmare.

"The harder I tried to set structure and rules the more Tatsuya rebelled. I feel I failed him on more than one occasion. I don't think being strict can reign them in, at least from my experience. Is there a club or something they could join? Something that might engage them in a more constructive way?"

[auspex_caelo]

"I think that's usually the time when one starts giving them a measure of added responsibility." Stratos doesn't get all the foreign terminology, but he can infer the gist of the question at hand. It's probably not remotely surprising that the man in medieval-Roman steel armor is going to start talking about duty here. "Most of the children I grew up with began preparing for apprenticeships at that age. Rules and discipline are important, but I think a sense of purpose is equally necessary."