Just Kidding
Lion and Magic Boy's entry Words I'm Sure I Use Too Often reminded me of the ongoing discussion we have with Gabriel about, "Just kidding!"
Gabriel, until recently, used this often. It was, in his mind, his get-out-of-jail-free card. If he meant to do something, got caught (or the activity just went south-of-intent), he could say, "Just kidding" and magically erase time.
Funny enough, my younger brother, K, used to also say, "Just kidding!" in the same context. He was a bit older than Gabriel is now, but his use of the expression was pervasive. He seemed to say it all the time.
My parents corrected this, in the name of taking responsibility for your actions, by charging K a quarter each time he said, "Just kidding!" His behavior adjusted (rather quickly) accordingly.
Now Uncle K, K introduced this idea to Gabriel while all of us were out grabbing coffee (well, Gabriel and Cousin J weren't getting coffee).
"Just kidding!" Gabriel announced.
"That'll be a quarter," Uncle K replied. Uncle K explained the system to Gabriel. We all laughed. Gabriel tried it again. Uncle K kept track in quarters. I said, "Just kidding" once and owed Gabriel some money. It turned into a good verbal awareness and math game.
Interestingly, without any money changing hands, this exercise yielded the same benefit. Gabriel has abandoned, "Just kidding." He treats the expression as a swear word. He will allude to it, but refuse to say it for fear of losing something: maybe money, maybe pride.
Of course, in his lawyerness, Gabriel has come up with substitute expressions that technically aren't the same: "Kidding" (no "Just"), "Just joking!"
Oh well. I'm sure our quarter jar, when initiated, won't be starved for money.
-- Dad
