When I was a kid, I firmly believed that grown-ups never did anything stupid. Where I got that idea, I don't know. This post would be more aptly named, "Confessions of a stupid grown-up."
I am downright AMAZED at some of the smack-your-forehead stupid things I've done during my adult years. I've used the phrase "because I said so!" countless times when working in the church nursery, after I swore to myself I would never use the phrase "because I said so!" I've made some other mistakes that weren't quite as comical as that one.
Sometimes I get so stubborn that the only thing distinguishing me from a three-year-old is my size. A few weeks ago i was driving home and I felt a low coming on. I have mastered the art of opening the outer pocket on my purse and getting the glucose tabs while driving, but that only goes so far when you've forgotten to fill up the tube and fill your purse with snacks. (Smack-your-forehead moment #1: Leaving home without glucose tabs and LOADS of snacks when you know FULL WELL that you go low at the drop of a hat.) There was any number of places I could have stopped to get food, but my stupid pride got in the way of considering that option. (That would've been smack-your-forehead moment #2, since driving with low blood sugar is about as safe is driving drunk.) I reasoned that I should be able to drive non-stop for 20 minutes as well as the next person. I managed to get home, crawl across my apartment to the kitchen, and get the chocolate out of the fridge just in time to avoid passing out on the kitchen floor. I recovered pretty quickly, but I felt like I'd run a marathon and I decided I would never be that stupid again.
Thankfully, I learned from the blood sugar blunder and I am much more cautious about preventing lows on the go. Unfortunately, that hasn't made me immune to having other smack-your-forehead moments.
Today I was getting coffee with a friend. My coffee was ring-of-fire hot. I tried to cool it down by stirring it a bunch, but that didn't work. (Smack-your-forehead moment #3: I decided to just take little sips.) I was running on about five hours of sleep, so I wasn't quite all there upstairs. If I was, I would have some up with some sort of ridiculously simple solution like, oh I don't know, getting a few ice cubes or putting a splash of ice water in the coffee. But no, I had to keep sipping on this bonkers hot coffee. I was too smack-your-forehead stupid to predict what was going to happen next. And now the roof of my mouth is covered in blistering burns, and for the rest of the day, the only things i could put in my mouth without wanting to scream were ice water and yogurt.
I'll never do that again, but by now I know better than to say I'll never do stupid things again. I'm not a parent, and i'm definitely not a parenting expert, but I think we do kids a great disservice when we give them the impression of having it all together and never messing up.
