too much information.....

ok, so this morning, on my usual mid-morning walk down to the tech school and back...my walk-mate intimated that she took her elderly mother to the doctor yesterday, only to find that her mother had a major uti...and that the doctor gave strict instructions for my workmate to throw away her mother's nylon panties, buy cotton briefs, and to quit feeding the infection........the doctor had not given much explanation of how one feeds an infections....but at a fast food supper following the appointment, the mamma had spilled part of her meal in her lap...at which point my workmate had quipped....'mamma- will you please quit feeding that infection!'...and while this was funny, it occured to me that there are few people that i would feel comfortable bringing up a storyline that involved my mother's choice of underwear and/or the notion that spilt food might feed a uti......there were other stories today that involved too much information.....the workmate whose children (freshman and 6th grader) have been kicked off their bus for the rest of the year for fighting....with each other.....and the workmate whose 16-year-old stepdaughter is pregnant and threatening to quit school........quite curious in that my own children imagine that i go to work each and every day with stories that involve their deepest secrets....gentle readers....i cannot hope to compete with the stories of those i work with.....and so i do not attempt to do so........mostly, i listen and nod.......and offer words of comfort.....and trust that someday my doubting kin will come to understand that the issues issues that we as a family fuss about...in public and in private, are so mainstream as to be boring.......and that is the way i intend to keep things........having no interest in duplicating the drama that surrounds those that i have come to love and respect