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Yesterday my son (a ninth grader) had what he thought was the greatest idea ever: get a thermos, fill it with gourmet hot chocolate - which we have six cans of, in three different flavors, thanks to my mother - and take it to school every morning. He predicted it would start a trend. I'm like okay, whatever, let's make a dent in the gourmet hot chocolate supply before Grandma sends more.
So today after school we went shopping for the thermos. Except for the part where the embarrassing mom sang "I'm Picking Out a Thermos for You" from The Jerk, it was richly rewarding. My son the trendsetter got a very "cool" thermos - stainless steel, black cap, perfect for starting a trend. He was stoked.
Then we got home, and my DU bumper sticker was in the mail. Well, my son is not only a trendsetter but also a sticker hound. He and his friends put stickers all over everything - bike, snowboard, mini-disc player, cell phone, notebooks, you name it. There are two stickers on the cordless phone in the livingroom (not my idea, but I decided to leave them because they make it easier to spot the handset when SOMEONE forgets to put it back on the base). Applying the stickers is an art; you have to have an X-acto knife to do it right, and it can't be just any old sticker. The typical desirable sticker is from a company that makes extreme sports equipment or clothing.
Surprise - he wanted the DU sticker for the thermos. I was thinking about putting it on my car, but he really wanted it and I'll admit I was flattered to think I had a desirable sticker in my possession. So I let him have it.
It does look cool, and the trend has already started.
After the sticker was applied, the nightly yackfest began. I swear, these boys are like a bunch of girls - as soon as they get home from whatever they've been doing all day, they start calling each other and conferencing in other boys and girls, and it lasts until I say get off the phone already. Anyway, one kid's dad just happened to be at the store where we bought the thermos, so the kid called his dad and requested the same thermos - which was OK with my son because, after all, he's trying to start a trend. Then another kid said he'd get one, too. And who knows how many other kids will want one tomorrow when they see the Great Thermos of Underground Democracy.
Of course they'll have to get their own stickers.
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