About three weeks ago, my three-year-old son saw this video. (How he saw it is a discussion for another post on lazy parenting strategies, a topic on which I consider myself an expert.) Since that day, we have watched the video no fewer than four times a day. We have uploaded the song for him on our iPods so he can listen to it in the car. Is he running the show, you ask? Yes, he is. Isn't this my just dessert for not monitoring his viewing habits? Sure. But it still beats the more offensive songs in his repertoire: "The Wheels on the Bus," "London Bridge," "Twinkle, Twinkle..." You get the idea.
The question, of course, is what the long-lasting effects of repeated exposure to this video will be on his three-year-old mind. Pyromaniacal tendencies? A healthy fear of angry women? An unhealthy attraction to angry women? The ability to count backwards from nine? A bizarre and difficult-to-fulfill clown/transvestite fetish? Or just really bad taste in music?
Another question: have I inadvertently recreated the song's central message in my own home? "This used to be a fun house" (before we heard this song).
Aside from the counting, can anything good come of it?
7 comments:
I have a feeling Dear One that you are being too hard on yourself. Is this something you make a habit of? A girl who quotes Herman Melville does note seem like the kind of girl who goes around the house "only" listening to pre-school jibba-jabba and angry post feminist pop tunes. (Although I do quite like that song) I honestly believe that Pink's song could only be a positive influence on your boy. Not only will he become attracted to strong women, but he will also learn through positive reinforcement that scary clowns are in fact pussys.
If you really insist on feeling guilty, then throw on some Shubert before bedtime. That will put you all to sleep.
Life is short. Who was it who said..."One should try everything once. Except incest and folk dancing."
Love,
Bev
Bev,
Thank you for being the first to comment on the version of me. Ana 2.0 -- with better reliability and faster running speeds. You never know when you'll have to outrun a deer or a crazy neighbor. Thank you!
luv,
Ana
Dear Ana, and I'm number two. This video is "not available in your country due to copyright restrictions" - bastards. At first I guessed it might have been "House of Fun" by Madness or "Killer Clowns from Outer Space" by the Dickies, but I now see that it is young people's music and so I'd never have been able to guess it :-) How's the job, by the way? And why was the summer bad? I'm concerned about you.
Gadj! Thank you so much for visiting! The video is Pink's "Funhouse" and the post is much more entertaining if you can see it. Sorry about that! The job is great... well, very stressful actually but I haven't floundered completely, so I'd say great. As to why the summer was bad, well... that might need a few postings of its own. Thank you for your concern. To keep with our musical theme, "It's alright now... It's Jumpin' Jack Flash, It's a gas, gas, gas." :-)
One of my friends has a five-year-old daughter that fell in love with Katy Perry's "I Kissed a Girl." There are worse things in life than Pink.
Of course, you could try getting him hooked on these videos too:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YBrb8vTNWHE
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=51V1VMkuyx0
P.S. - Your first comment got caught in my spam filter. I un-spammed it.
Brandon -- Those were great! Seriously, I loved them! Is it just me or did one of the guys in the party scene in the second one look like you? Are you a star or something?
Thanks for coming to visit. Glad to hear from you again.
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