Clancy's Wednesday Jar Pull: How did you like being the oldest, middle or youngest child?
I am the oldest of two. Jazzy butt is almost three years younger than myself. I liked being the oldest but mostly I just love my Jazzy and the fun memories we made together (both good and bad!). I remember visiting my Mom at the hospital after she had him in 1979. I was sad because she had been gone and I couldn't be with her. Back then they did not allow children in the rooms at Geisinger Medical Center. I can still see my Mom waddling down the hall towards us as I was so excited and relieved. She had on slippers and a robe and pointed to my little brother through the nursery glass.
I paved the way for that kid (not that I had it super rough)! Once in a while my parents would try to give me a privilege but he would cry his eyes out and everyone felt bad. He almost always got his way. He was (and he would admit this) in the truest sense my bratty little brother. For instance, Christmas the year I was in 2nd grade my Grandparents got Jazz and I a TV to share. We were way excited! My Dad said I could stay up 30 minutes more at my insistance to watch "Family Ties" at 8 PM because I was older. The very first night Jazz ended up with the same privilege, which defeated the purpose in my mind but made me feel less guilty. Sometimes I just think it was easier for my parents to give in then to fight him!
I do wish I had been nicer to him growing up. I was allowed (in my mind) to tease and even be mean BUT I did not tolerate it from others. I hated when people teased or were mean to him. Those were the times we stuck together! Like when big bad Kevin Hurley from around the corner told my Mom Jazz was dropping f bombs at the bus stop. It wasn't true and made me so mad. I told Kevin where to go on many occasions despite the fact that he was years older and much bigger than us. It didn't stop him from chasing us almost all the way home, the jerk wad!
We use to go on family ski vacations every year. When I was in 5th grade the year we were on vacation I can remember quietly hissing the words, "Moby Dick" to him after we were supposed to be in bed for the mere puprose of stirring the pot (I still so love to stir the pot!!). He would of course do the tattle tale thing insisting the I was swearing to which I would deny simply because I wasn't. Then we would do the routine all over again. I would giggle my guts out simply because it infuriated him so much and let's face it, he loved to tattle!!
When I was in 7th grade I use to ask him how his Gynelotrimin was and when he inquired of me what that was I would tell him to ask his Gynocologist! My BF Cindy and I got a huge kick out of that simply because again it infuriated him not to know what we were talking about. One time he chased us around the pool screaming and threatening us with a big red plastic bat that he kept smacking with all of his might on the sidewalk. It was fun until he asked my Mom at which point I got chewed out (which didn't stop me from qiuetly teasing him).
I do think (and he also knows this) that he got babied a ton. For example, when I was in 9th grade he knocked on my door to be a brat. I was on the phone, opened the door and got his lack of trombone skills blaring in my face. My angry response was to shut the door as quickly as I could which jacked his trombone into his teeth and you can be sure that I was the one who got in trouble! We had way too many incidents that he incited in which I got in trouble!!!
When I was serving my LDS mission in Belgium/France for a period of 18 months he only wrote to me once. Keep in mind that my family is not LDS. He was in college at the time at Penn State and sent me a package of red Swedish fish with a card for my birthday. The card said, "Happy Birthday. I hope that you are doing good at whatever missionaries do. Please tell Dad that I sent this". The end. He did redeem himself when he moved across the country to help me when I was a single Mom with two young toddlers! He use to hold it against me but now that he has his Micci we have made our peace (he went from being spoiled by my parents to really being spolied by Mic!)!!!
There were times when we bonded together. I prompted him to ask my Mom what the f word meant. We both were curious and had heard it on one of the many not cool shows we watched on HBO (Police Academy, Revenge of the Nerds, Up the Creek, Pretty Woman). We stood in the kitchen looking at my Mom while she was at the big brown sink. She didn't look down as we stood beside her peering up. Her response was unforgetable. "It's a bad kind of love". End of story but it still makes us laugh!!!
We also bonded smuggling in a kitten into the playhouse after my Grandfather put my cat to sleep while we were on vacation (she was allergic to milk and he fed her some unknowingly...it was tragic really). We went down to Pearl's half way house together on our bikes in Riverside, picked out Tigger and brought him home. We kept in him the playhouse for a few days before introducing him to our Mom (who was a sucker for strays and Jazzy!!!). Tigger actually just passed away a few years ago and was a great cat!
Despite the fact that he use to eavesdrop, throw my friends shoes in the snow, cut the heads off of my stuffed animals, take my stuff without asking and then lie about it (ahem, my Alanis Morisette and REM cd's...busted!), threaten my friends that he was going to kick them in the 'geraniums' and do his best to get me in trouble (I still can't believe he told my parents I was sitting on Chris Pehowic's lap on the front porch, ugh) I wouldn't trade my bratty little Gyno guy for the world! I use to hate and deny the crap out of it when people use say that some day we would be the best friends but apparently they really did know better than I did! ;)
Here is some note worthy information on birth order from the Child Devlopment Institution. Time magazine actually did a piece on this in 2007 that I found interesting and here is a birth order predictor quiz that is kind of fun!
On the B Side: I love my little brother to pieces!!! Despite our constant antagonism towards each other growing up we had a ton of fun, made lots of great memories and are very close now! Love your guts, Jazz man!!!
