Last month on my way home from an overnight trip to Charlotte, I was listening to a local talk radio show. The topics seem to be aimed at the stereotype of "white trash" in the South. I caught the last 15 minutes of the topic, "My Biggest Redneck Moment" where I listened to a caller describe how after a big summer storm, they found the back of their oversized pickup to be full of water. The woman said she gathered up her kids, brought them outside and yelled, "Time to go swimming!" They all got their bathing suits on and played in their makeshift pool.
Confirmation that this show was aimed at trashiness came with the next topic "My DSS Moment." They encouraged callers to call in with their stories of the times they thought someone might call the Department of Social Services on them. I shook my head, slightly appalled as I listened to people calling in about smacking, spanking and "popping" (apparently a one spank, spank) their kids in public.
Now, I'm not a parent so it's easy to have certain opinions about this. I would like to think that I would never spank my child, but I also know that almost every single one of my friends has made this same statement and ends up spanking their kids at some point. I'm not exactly comfortable witnessing this, as it seems like something that should be a private moment like changing your tampon, but when I've seen it I just get quiet and don't say anything. Once again, I'm not judging because I don't know. I mean, I was spanked and I don't have any traumatic memories about spankings except for the time my principal did it when I accidentally ripped a shirt off a boy.
As I listened to the callers call in with their stories though, I heard a few stories that definitely exceeded spanking. I was getting quite bothered listening to everyone on the show laugh about what they were hearing, and was about to turn the station when I heard the following story from a caller.
The man was at a sporting goods store, apparently called Big Dick's. This of course grabs me and I decide I simply can't turn the station when they're saying "Big Dick's." The caller was a father who was there buying sneakers for his pre-teen son. His son wanted all the expensive shoes, and the father tried to get him to look at the inexpensive ones instead. This upset his son who didn't want "un-cool" sneakers. He wanted ones that were "in" and of course much pricier. The father told his son that he wasn't spending $100 on "no damned sneakers." The son then loudly states, "It's not my fault I was born into a POOR family!"
The father was pissed and grabbed his son by the neck and shook him a moment before he noticed a store employee staring at them with her mouth agape.
"What are you looking at?" he shouted at her.
She continued to stare and walked to the register, motioning to the man and his son. The man, his hand still on the back of his son's neck, then started leading his son out of the store and said, "Come on! We're going to Wal-Mart!"
The son pouted and shouted, "I don't want no Wal-Mart shoes!"
His father responded, "Oh, we're not going there for shoes! I'm taking there so I can beat you and no one will care!"
I burst out laughing. It's so true. I can't believe the shit I've seen in Wal-Mart! I used to avoid it like the plague because between how they do business and the atmosphere in there, I felt like I needed therapy every time I left. However, a new one just opened by my house and being absolutely broke I have succumbed to grocery shopping there so I can afford to eat.
On my way home tonight, I stopped there to pick up a few items. It was fairly quiet and empty, which was a nice relief. I grabbed my items and rushed to the checkout. I was paying for my stuff when I heard the shouting.
"Say HEY! SAY IT!"
I looked up and in the line across from me, a woman had her 5-year old sprawled out in her cart, bags buried on his legs. She was holding a cell phone up to his ear.
"SAY HEY DAMN IT! SAY HEYYYYYY!"
Oh my god! She's screaming at him to talk on the phone? I looked the boy with his zoned out expression, much like mine after leaving Wal-Mart. I wanted to ask her what her fucking problem was, but bit my lip.
"SAY HEYYYYYYY!!!!!" she screamed again. She then lifted her arm as if to warn him she was going to smack him, but then looked up and saw me staring at her, jaw dropped.
She lowered her arm and glared at me. I glared back, grabbed my receipt and muttered as I walked away, "It's okay. You can beat your kids in Wal-Mart."
