Child #1: [Parent], no parent does that. You don’t have to do that.
City Councilperson: … if they were not in my same situation they wouldn’t do it … but it sounds like a reasonable thing to me.
Child #1: No it doesn’t. You start dinner …
City Councilperson: I don’t know why it’s so bad.
Child #1: Because.
City Councilperson: You could wait in the car if you want, and then I’ll go in and we’ll keep going.
Child #1: How long will it be?
City Councilperson: Well, it won’t be fine for you to wait in the car. I could go and–
Child #1: –no–
City Councilperson: –I could drop you off at home and–
Child #1: –you can just forget it and then go to dinner with us.
City Councilperson: But I would like to go. It would be a fun thing to go to. I would like to go.
Child #1: So? You’re forgetting your responsibilities. You can go when [parent]’s in town.
City Councilperson: I can’t go when [parent]’s in town. [Parent] causes problems whenever [parent]’s in town. [Parent] doesn’t want me to go. Either way, I’m always, like, having problems doing anything I want to do.
Child #1: [Child #2] doesn’t know how to count without using …
Child #2: It’s hard, I’m only in second grade.
Child #1: I could do multiplication, my times tables in second grade. In French. All the way up to twelve.
City Councilperson: Don’t listen to [Child #1].
Child #1: [CC Parent], you know that’s true.
City Councilperson: Why would I want to be home with you fighting with [Child #2] tonight, instead of going someplace where I would have a nice time?
Child #1: No, after dinner.
City Councilperson: Just tell me, why?
Child #1: After dinner.
City Councilperson: Oh, yeah, after dinner it’s going to be different.
Child #1: Then you can stay there. Okay?
City Councilperson: You tell my why I would want to spend time with you when this is what happens.
Child #1: This isn’t what happens a hundred percent of the time …
