You sure you want smart kids?

Nowadays education is all hyped up. Tuition, music, art and even yoga classes for tiny little kids. Even babies in the womb are not spared, with beethoven music played to them. DHA enhanced drinks, vitamins and so on are dished out to the kids, all in the hopes that they would grow up brilliant.

When I was young, I had a pretty normal childhood. No Mozart , Mental Maths or Montessary learning system, just sesame street, nursery rhymes and Peter & Jane books. I attended piano class for 1 month before I decided I hated it. Even so, many people remarked that I was smart. As my dad put it, sometimes too smart for the comfort of the adults.

Example:

Mum: Eat your flu medicine.
Me: Mum, I read that flu medicine does not actually cure flu but suppreses the symptoms only.
Mum: Aiya, just eat it la, it will make you feel better.
Me: In the long run it can cause damage to our immune system.
Mum: ......

Grandma: I made the rhino horn drink, drink it, its expensive and very good.
Me: Its useless
Grandma: People have been drinking that for centuries!
Me: They are wrong, National Geographic said rhino horn is made out of the same stuff as our fingernails.
Grandma: uh.....
Me: Rhinos face extiction because of those stupid people. You just killed a rhino by drinking this. I refuse to contribute to the extinction of rhinos!
Grandma: ....

Dad: Why are you so lazy, faster do your homework lah, its almost bedtime adi.
Me: You know , that's not the proper way to speak to kids, I read that positive reinforcement is the correct way. You should have said, it would make Daddy happy if you did your homework now. Saying that I am lazy might give a negative impact to me. The more you say a child is lazy, the more they will make that statement true.
Dad: I'm getting the cane now.
Me: OKOK I'm going to do it now.... but you should know that using force is not the right way to....
Dad:*Glares
Me: *Shuts up

These are real examples of how I used to converse with my parents. I guess it comes with reading and watching tv, back then I think i was like 9 - 12. Now with all the brain stimulating activities kids get these days, they might reason with you that way as early as age 5. You sure you want that?


Anyway, perhaps due to the lack of brain stimulation or DHA or whatever, I think more or less my brain is deteriorating as I get older. Just look.

The questions I used to ask

Back then
5 year old me: dad, what happens when we sleep?

Dad: well, when you sleep the subconcious mind takes over the consious mind....

Yes, when I was 5, I learned the meaning of stuff like subconcious mind, thanks to my dad.


Now
Me: Dad, what day is today already ar?
Dad: ........

ok, so my questions are getting more retarded.


Then
dad : ok so how much money worth of stuff did we buy today?
me: i know, i know! add all the groceries together its rm 106.25 !


Now
my sis: ok the amount we have to pay back is 15.30 + 10.50.
me: uh..thats thats.... you count la >.<

My brain is getting more retarded too....

Then again, there are things about me that dont change.

Then
Me to soft toy: Hi good morning miss kitty, how are you today?

Now
Me to the computer screen: Stupid report, WORK LA!

Looks like i still talk to inanimate objects.

Then
Wait ant, dont go that way, go this way! Come on, just enter that bottle

Now
bunny bunny, good bunny, go back to your cage, come on good girl....Smurfy, ENTER THE CAGE NOWWWWWW before i make you into stew!

I still talk to animals and expect them to do what I say

Then

Me: and the little mermaid said, "Oh Flounder, dont be such a guppy!" Then Flounder says, "Ariel wait!" Then he gets stuck in something, then he says, "Ariel Help!" Then she goes to free him, and then she says Oh Flounder, haha..." Then he says, "Shh, I think I hear something.... "then the shark comes out! and they swim and swim and ....
Mum: You forgot to do keep your toys, what did i just remind you about 5 minute ago?
Me: Uh... i forgot

Now
On msn to friend : and then naruto does the rasengan, and smashes it into itachi, but it turns out to be a clone! Apparently he got caught in the illusion. After that he recalled his sensei jiraiya saying that, in order to break a genjutsu, you must......
Mum: I just reminded you to take up the laundry 1 minute ago.
Me: Uh... i forgot

I remember everything except the things that are important.

Then
Me: generally the anotomy of a hummingbird is such that it constantly needs to eat otherwise it would die of starvation. thats why we always see them busy looking for food.

Dad: So, who is the president of the united states?
Me: Uh......

Now
Me: And if you cross a gerbil with the genes Aa Pp to a gerbil with the genes aa pp, you will get at least 4 colors of gerbil offspring ! Of course you also much take in account the Cch gene, you know the gene that dove gerbils have.....

Dad: uh ok, thats er interesting......
Dad: so u remember all our ministers?
Me: uh, i remember the prime minister n the deputy, and then got sammy vellu also, the rest i cant remember

Well, I'm good at general knowledge if it involves animals.


What can I say? Maybe DHA enchanced formula and Choppin for babies is important after all. I guess I needed it.